Sunset
by DreamingOfHope
Summary: Emma Swan knows more than she can let on about the town of Forks, her sister's love for Edward, and the supernatural world of vampires and werewolves. Armed with her knowledge of the future, can she change it for the better? Or will she just cause more chaos? Being tossed into an alternate universe, some things are bound to change. It's only a matter of time. (Alice/OC/Jasper)
1. Prologue

Sunset Prologue

The day that I turned 17, I remembered my first life. Well, I remember most of it. I knew about my original world and the things in it, but I just don't know a lot about me and who I was. I know that I died at 17 but I can't remember _how_ I died. I remember that my first set of parents were still together and that I was an only child rather than a younger twin. I know that I was in high school but not which school or where I lived or if I had any close friends.

I'm kind of glad that most of my memories are gone. It made it easier to focus on the life I have now and not try to think about the "what if's" and "should haves." I mourned a little (okay, more than a little, but wouldn't you too if you had a life you all but forgot?) but I tried to use the knowledge of my second chance as a push for me. I wanted to help others with the knowledge I have. I mean, I _had_ been using my knowledge before, just little things, but I never knew where it came from.

Most importantly for me, since I now live it, I remember the Twilight Saga. I don't know why the universe decided to send me to an alternate reality where I'm the little sister of Bella Swan but it had. In a way, it made it easier for me, knowing what was coming. It gave me more time to prepare for everything and get use to the idea of vampires and werewolves and a fictional world full of fictional characters turned real (though out of it all, _somehow_ it was the last thing that got to me the most).

Of course, there are some things you can't prepare for, especially when you go off script. Falling in love is one of them. Learning they love you back is the second.

* * *

**Authors Note:**

Super short, I know, but it's just an intro into the story. I actually have a hard time starting stories and ended up just leaving it after a while. At least its done.

So yeah... another "I fell into a fictional world" story. Totally not overused. I'm going to do my best to make it my own (but isn't that what all authors who do this say?).

Her name is Emmaline (Emma) Pearl Swan, younger twin to Bella. More about her in Chapter One, but I thought I should at least let you guys know her name.


	2. Chapter 1: We arrive home

Sunset Chapter 1: We arrive home (First Sight Part 1)

By the time Mom had driven us to the airport that morning, she had already told us how much she missed us at least four times. We hadn't even gotten on the plane and I was already tired. Bella was wearing the same outfit I know she would – sleeveless, white lace – and held her parka. I was wearing blue jeans and holding a green hoodie, ready for the rain that would await us.

"Bella, Emma," Mom said to us once again. "You don't have to do this."

Our mother, Renée, looked so worried about us. I felt sad about leaving her but I knew that it would be for the best in the end.

_She'll have a wonderful time in Florida with Phil, Charlie will get to spend more time with us, and Bella will get to meet the love of her life. _I thought, strengthening my resolve._ Everyone will be happy._

"Don't worry Mom, we'll be fine. I'll look after Bells and make sure that she doesn't get us into too much trouble." Mom gave me a teary chuckle. Bella always got into trouble easily, with me trying (and mostly failing) to get her out of whatever mess she made. I will say, most of the time it isn't her fault. Trouble just seems to seek her out.

Bella looked a little annoyed at the comment but ignored it. "I'm fine, I want to go," She lied. Bella wasn't a great liar but even I had to admit she almost sounded convincing.

"Tell Charlie I said hi."

"We will."

"I'll see you both soon," she insisted. "You can come home whenever you want – I'll come right back as soon as you need me."

I knew that she really would come back if we asked. I wouldn't ever think of doing so. She loved Phil and thrill of adventure too much. It would just hurt if either of us stayed and got in the way.

"Don't worry about it," Bella urged. "It'll be great. I love you, Mom."

"Love you too, Mom. We'll miss you." I said.

She gave us both tight hugs. Then we boarded the plane to Forks. I let Bella take the window seat in the hopes that it might cheer her up. It didn't seem to take as long to get going as it should have. Traveling never did Here.

I slept for most of the four-hour flight from Phoenix to Seattle, too excited about the move to sleep much last night. On the plane to Port Angeles I mostly watched the in-flight movie, some cheesy Rom-Com. I was glad when we landed, eager to see Dad and be able to get reacquainted with our small town. I wondered if I would get a chance to visit the Reservation before the small class trip later in the year or if I would have to wait.

Walking through the terminal, I grinned at the rain as it hit the windows. My sister might not like it, but I always enjoyed the rain. It was unavoidable in a place like Washington and I knew that Bella was already dreading the weather. She would come around eventually.

After getting our bags, we headed towards Charlie and his cruiser.

"Dad! I missed you!" Running towards him, I gave him the biggest hug I could, almost knocking us both over. It had been a too long for my liking.

Dad hugged me back just as much. "I missed you too, honey," he said as I pulled away.

Dad wasn't hard to deal with at all, contrary to what Bella had decided. He was just a little shy and unsure, but as soon as you made an effort and found something to talk about you would be fine. I guess it helped that unlike Bella, I was more outgoing like Renée. I also made an effort to be closer to Charlie during the summers that I spent at Forks.

Charlie gave Bella an awkward, one-armed hug when she stumbled on the sidewalk.

"It's good to see you, Bells," he said, smiling as he automatically caught and steadied her.

"You haven't changed much. How's Renée?"

"Mom's fine. It's good to see you, too, Dad."

Bella and I had only brought a few bags. Most of Bella's clothes were unsuited for Washington's weather and had stayed in Arizona. Most of my clothes were already here in my closet. We easily fit everything into the trunk.

"I found a good car for you both, really cheap," Dad announced when we were strapped in. We had been decided a while ago that we would share a car to make it easier.

"What kind of car?" Bella said. Of course, I already knew what kind of car it was, so I just listened in from the back.

"Well, it's a truck actually, a Chevy."

"Where did you find it?"

"Do you remember Billy Black down at La Push?" I smiled, remembering La Push and the Blacks. Even after Bella refused to keep coming here, I continued to spend most of my summers in Forks. I often went down to La Push and hung out with Billy, Jacob, and my other friends from the reservation.

"No." I rolled my eyes at her bluntness. Of course not. Bella saw to it that she removed most of her childhood memories of Forks. As if she knew what I was thinking, she turned and gave me a look.

"He used to go fishing with us during the summer," Charlie prompted.

"He's in a wheelchair now," Charlie continued when neither of us respond, too caught up in our staring contest, "so he can't drive anymore, and he offered to sell me his truck cheap."

"What year is it?" I blinked and looked away. Dang it.

"Well, Billy's done a lot of work on the engine – it's only a few years old, really."

Bella's triumphant grin faded. "When did he buy it?"

"He bought it in 1984, I think."

"Did he buy it new?"

"Well, no. I think it was new in the early sixties – or late fifties at the earliest," he admitted sheepishly.

"Ch – Dad, I don't really know anything about cars. I wouldn't be able to fix it if anything went wrong, and I couldn't afford a mechanic..."

"Really, Bella, the thing runs great. They don't build them like that anymore."

"And," I piped up, "Billy's son Jacob is a mechanic. I'm sure that if we ask nicely, Jake would help if we have any problems."

Bella still looked a little unsure. "How cheap is cheap?"

"Well, honey, I kind of already bought it for you. As a homecoming gift." Charlie peeked sideways at Bella with a hopeful expression.

I jumped in before Bella could say anything to hurt Dad's feelings. She had a nasty habit of sometimes not thinking before she spoke.

"Wow! Thank you so much Dad." _Don't say anything hurtful, please, Bella._

Thankfully, she seemed to catch my hint.

"That's really nice, Dad. Thanks. I really appreciate it."

"Well, now, you're welcome," he mumbled, embarrassed by our thanks. They both looked straight-ahead as they talked. Bella was too much like Dad, unable to show her feelings very well and sometimes too stubborn for her own good. They both were uncomfortable around each other, so that didn't help much. Hopefully I could help to bridge that gap.

We talked a bit about the weather a little before we fell into silence. Staring out the window, I couldn't help but notice how beautiful the scenery was. Bella was right – it was an alien planet. Greenery everywhere, the forest reaching up high enough to cover the sky at some points. The rain had not lessened a bit, still falling on to the ground causing puddles to form all over the road. I had almost forgotten how much I loved it here.

I liked to think that I lived somewhere like Forks Before.

Soon we pulled up into the driveway. Dad's house had changed from a two-bedroom to a three-bedroom. The change was probably an adjustment made for my being here. The rest of the house was still the same as it had always been. "Welcome home, Emma," the house seemed to say to me.

_Welcome Home, indeed._

Parked out in front of the house was the faded red truck. Looking at it, I could see why Bella loved it so much. It was big and bulky but that only added to its character. I was kind of disappointed that this meant that I wouldn't get to see Jacob until at least the upcoming weekend but a little more interested in settling in at the moment.

"Wow, Dad, I love it! Thanks!" Bella was all over the car in an instant.

"It's wonderful," I stated, glad that there would be at least one thing about this town that she wouldn't hate. For now, at least.

"I'm glad you two like it," Charlie said gruffly, embarrassed again.

It only took one trip to get all of our stuff upstairs. Once I got everything in my room, Dad gave me another hug. "Good to have you back, Emmie," he said before he left me to unpack.

My walls were a nice cream color that went well with my wooden floors that I had thrown a brown rug over. My bedspread was a darker shade of green, my favorite color, with white polka dots and white sheets. I had two side tables, a dresser, a desk, and a bookshelf, the top of the bookshelf filled with trophies (mostly participation from when I was younger). Lantern lights hung all over my room. Bella and I found them fun little decorations to put up when we were younger and just never took them down. Green and white curtains covered my windows. I had my own closet but I would still have to share the only bathroom with Dad and Bella.

The first thing I did was charge up my phone and laptop. Unlike Bella, I splurged a bit of my money so that I wouldn't have to deal with the dinosaur computer in her room. Even for 2005, that thing was _old_.

I sent Mom a quick email to tell her that we got to Dad's safely and that I would talk to her later. I took a look at my flip phone and sighed. Only a few more years until the first iPhone. I could survive until then. At least I _had_ a mobile phone. I don't know how Bella got so far without one.

I was pretty sure from my knowledge of technology that I was originally from the future. Or at least, the future based off of where time is right now. And that might not even be correct seeing as my life Before my Death was technically in another dimension. I had taken to calling my first life "Before my Death" or just "Before."

Pushing myself out of my thoughts, I continued to put away my clothes and other things, making sure to place my dance bag near the door for tomorrow. I tried not to think about how many stares I would get tomorrow as one of the "New Girls" or the fact that Bella would essentially cry herself to sleep. If I tried to help her she would just push me away and say she was fine. No, it was better to let herself do what she had to so she could feel better.

While putting my things into the bathroom, I decided to get some of the knots out of my hair. _That's what I get for sleeping on the plane._ Looking at myself, I wonder if anyone would mix us up or if it wouldn't take long for the students to realize how different we are.

Bella and I were both the same height and had the same very pale skin. We both also have light brown hair (Bella with more red tints than me) but I managed to get Mom's ocean blue eyes while Bella got Dad's chocolate brown.

Differing from Bella, I manage to keep my balance pretty well. Considering I'm a dancer, I was pretty happy about that. Because of my athleticism, I was still slim but not as soft. No six pack here, but I had a few hidden muscles.

Unfortunately, I was no stranger to being hurt. I often tried to help Bella with her balance, leading me to losing my own. Of course, I got my myself hurt plenty with dance, especially since some girls (and a few boys) could be ruthless.

Finishing with my hair, I went to go see how Bella was settling in. She still had most of her bags full and was lying on her bed, staring at the ceiling.

"You ok there, Bell?" I asked as I sat on the bed next to her.

"Yeah, fine. Just worried about tomorrow," Bella said, looking upset. I knew that she was not very good with the spotlight put on her. I was the same, except for when I was performing. Still, I could fake it well enough. Bella, on the other hand, didn't do very well with hiding her distain from others.

"You'll be fine. Besides, I'll be there to help. Even if we don't have the same schedule, I'll be there for you."

"Thanks, Emma. I'll try to remember that."

I frowned about her dismissal but let it go. She really was a "suffer in silence" type, wasn't she?

Now, don't get me wrong, I love my sister very much but sometimes I just want to knock some sense into her, especially once I remembered her book-self (and movie-self, but I don't remember the films as much. This universe seemed to mostly go along with the books anyway). I never really liked the way that she acts in the book or even sometimes as we grew up, but I dealt with it. We don't always see eye to eye and I might not agree with some of the things she has done (or will do) but I still love her.

_Even when she sometimes acts like a self-entitled brat._

Later that night, Charlie ordered pizza for dinner since we didn't have much in the way of groceries. I could tell that Bella was going to make it her mission to take over the cooking and maybe even the cleaning. After I watched a bit of TV with Dad before heading to bed. I had an easy time falling asleep with the rhythm of the rain.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Happy Memorial Day guys! I meant to get this posted in Saturday but wasn't able to until today. My plan is to post every Saturday but only because I have some chapters typed up already and I know I can have them ready by then. I only have up to chapter 6 done, so after that my posting will be more random. ****Speaking of chapters, I want every chapter to be about equal to the chapter in the books. I thought First Sight was a bit too long though, so I split it into two chapters. They aren't evenly split so the next one is longer, but I thought this was the best place to stop.**

**(As you can see, Emma has got a little bit of bitterness towards Bella's attitude on things but she still loves her sister.)**

**Thanks for the reviews and support! I hope you enjoyed this chapter.**


	3. Chapter 2: Lady Luck kicks me down

Sunset Chapter 2: Lady Luck kicks me down with spiked heels (First Sight Part 2)

The next morning, I got up early to take a shower and find an outfit to wear but decided to leave my hair down. I wanted to make a good impression but I didn't want to go overboard and look like I was trying too hard.

"_Noooo_. Why can't I find anything to wear?" I groaned, knowing that I was working myself up over nothing. Eventually I picked out one of my favorite outfits: a black tee-shirt with a shimmery sea turtle, blue jeans with tears in the knees, an army green jacket, and black converse. At least even if they didn't like my outfit, I would be comfortable for my first day.

Breakfast with Dad was quiet, but nice. Mornings with Mom tended to be loud and chaotic most days. Dad wished us luck at school. We thanked hm, though I could tell Bella didn't think it would help. She wasn't completely wrong, what with Edward going to almost kill her. I decided against saying anything, worried about changing anything so soon. Hopefully my day would be better, free of murderous vampires.

Charlie left us soon after, off to the police station. I know Bella was embarrassed about Dad being the chief of police but I thought it was so cool as a kid. Even as I got older, I still found that I looked up to him more because of it. I mean, Dad worked really hard to get where he is and I feel proud of him for going out there every day and doing his best to keep everyone in the town safe. I am thankful though that he's the chief of a small town because it limits how many dangerous things can happen to him. Well if there were no supernatural things to deal with, that is.

As we got up to go, I saw Bella looking at the photos on the fireplace. Joining her, I looked over the frames. First was a wedding picture of Dad and Mom in Las Vegas, then one of the four of us in the hospital after Bella and I were born, followed by all of our school pictures up to last year's. I could tell that Bella was uncomfortable with the photos, but I found it cute how much dad wanted to show that he loved us even if we weren't here.

"Come on, let's go." I knew that we would get there early but I let her have an out.

We put on our jackets, both black, grabbed our backpacks (and my dance bag), and headed out into the rain.

It was just drizzling still as we locked up. I resisted the urge to jump into the puddles as we walked to the truck. I doubted that Bella would like it if I got too much water or mud in the truck on the first day.

Inside the truck, it was nice and dry. It had obviously been cleaned it up, but the car still smelled faintly of tobacco, gasoline, and peppermint. The engine started quickly, to Bella's relief, but loudly. I had forgotten how loud the truck was, but it wasn't as bad as it could have been.

Driving to school was easy considering I already know where it was. It wouldn't have been too bad anyway since it was just off of the highway. Forks High School was surrounded by trees and shrubs. It was like looking at a collection of small houses. I wondered who thought it was a good idea to have the school in separate buildings considering we lived in a state that rained about the third of the time.

Bella stopped the truck out in front of the main office so that we could get our schedules. Almost no one was here yet, so I wasn't too worried about finding a parking space. We quickly went inside to get out of the cold.

The office was warm and small; a little waiting area with padded folding chairs, carpeted floors, notices and awards cluttering the walls, a big clock ticking loudly. Potted plants grew everywhere and the room was cut in half by a long counter, cluttered with wire baskets full of papers and brightly colored flyers taped to its front. There were three desks behind the counter, one of which held red-haired woman wearing glasses and a purple t-shirt.

The red-haired woman (Mrs. Coop? Cooper? I couldn't remember) looked up. "Can I help you?"

"I'm Isabella Swan and this is my sister Emmaline," Bella informed her. I nodded with an awkward half-smile. I didn't hate my name like Bella did, but I preferred Emma.

The women immediately straightened up and looked us over. As expected, we were the talk of the town. I resisted the urge to shiver at her gaze. It was a little creepy the way she looked at us like we were lambs being put up for slaughter.

"Of course," she said as she turned away to dig through the pile of documents on her desk until she found the ones she was looking for. "I have your schedules right here, and maps of the school." She brought several sheets to the counter to show us.

She went through our classes for us, highlighting the best route to each on the map, and gave us each a slip to have all of our teachers sign, which we were to bring back at the end of the day. She smiled at us and hoped that we would like it here in Forks. I smiled back as Bella and I compared schedules.

We both started with first period English but most of our day diverted after that. Bella had Government, Trigonometry, Spanish, Lunch, Biology, and Gym. I, on the other hand, went to Trigonometry, Chemistry, US History, Lunch, and Dance or Dance/Gym. Since I chose to take Chemistry instead of Biology, US History instead of Government, and had already gotten credits for Spanish, my schedule had to be moved around.

I have no clue if Dance was always a thing that Edward-obsessed Bella just never noticed or if it was because of me, but I was thrilled to be able to take dance as a class! We would normally have a recital at Christmas (which I had missed) and the end of the year so I was excited for that, too.

Since it was physical exercise, the school counted it as a Gym class but in return we had to join Coach Clapp's P.E. class on Tuesdays and Thursdays for 7th period. The Dance classes lasted for both 6th and 7th on the other three days so I wasn't too upset. This just meant that I had help protect Bella's classmates from her twice a week.

I was thankful that we didn't share all of our classes; I didn't just want to become "Bella's Twin Sister." By separating, we could show ourselves to be different people. I was also afraid that if I was around too much I would change what was meant to happen with the Cullens. I don't know what my blood will do to them and I would rather not test Edward past what he can take. Who knows, my scent could be just as bad (or good depending on you view) as my sister's.

By the time we went back out to Bella's truck, other students had started to arrive. We drove around the school, following the line of traffic. Most of the cars were older, nothing really flashy. Except for the shiny Volvo that stood out like a sore thumb. It should have come to a surprise that they could stick out so much but still "blend in" but it didn't.

"_This universe gives me a headache trying to figure it out,"_ I thought, rubbing my temple.

Deciding to come back to the impossibilities that is the Twilight Universe, I looked over to Bella. She had already parked the truck and was now trying her hardest to memorize the map. I didn't bother. I knew I would just forget it anyway.

"You ready to go? Or do you need a pen so you can write the way on your arm?" I laughed. Bella actually looked like she was considering it for a few seconds before putting the map away.

"No, I think I'm good. Let's just get this over with," she sighed. I felt kind of bad for her since I knew her day was going to get worse but I made my decision. No trying to change the future unless necessary. Or for cheap tricks. Hey, a girl has to get her enjoyment from somewhere! _And what's the use of my knowledge if I don't use it every once in a while?_

Grabbing my bag, I slung the strap over my shoulder, and stepped out of the truck. I would just come back for my dance bag after lunch and put it in my locker after I found it today. I kept my face covered by my hood as I walked to the sidewalk, if just to keep the looks away for the next few minutes.

Once we got around the cafeteria, building three was easy to spot. A large black "3" was painted on a white square on the east corner.

The classroom was small. The people in front of us stopped just inside the door to hang up their coats on a long row of hooks. We copied them, placing our black rain coats on the hooks. I kept my green jacket on.

We gave the slips to the English teacher, Mr. Mason. I was a little amused by his staring (_Why were all of the adults acting like the teens they were intended to teach?_) but ultimately glad when he sent us to the back of the class without making us introduce ourselves.

It was harder for our new classmates to stare at us in the back, but somehow, they managed. Bella kept her eyes down, her face flushed red. I looked at the reading list the teacher had given me. It was fairly basic: Bronte, Shakespeare, Chaucer, Faulkner. I'd already read everything (or at least watched some of the movies). Bella's love of the classics was good for something.

I know my sister was wondering if mom would send her old folder of essays or not. I already brought mine over so I could just reuse them. I mean, they were my work so why shouldn't I use them again? It's not like Mr. Mason would know the difference. Even if it was technically plagiarism, I knew it wouldn't matter. Its easy to get away with small things like that Here.

Bored with Mr. Mason talk of some Shakespeare play, I looked around the room towards the other students. I recognized one or two from just seeing them around town, but I didn't know their names. I could see who I thought was Eric trying to 'sneakily' look at us.

I almost froze when I got to the back of a girl with short, pixie cut black hair. There was no way that was her, right? Except I could see her skin, pale and smooth like marble. She was short and thin, just as the Books said and even from the back, I could see how she moved with an odd grace. Her hair wasn't super short like I expected. It was a little longer and right next to her ears. It also wasn't super spiked out like in the Twilight movie, it was more controlled than that, but still had some spikiness to it.

I was so confused. I thought there were no Cullens in any of Bella's classes except for Biology? Did I do something so that Alice Cullen was in our English class or was it just a fluke? As if she knew I was thinking about her (or more likely could feel me staring at her back), she turned around just enough for me to see her smile at me before turning back around.

_Oh my – She smiled at me! Why? What do I do?_

Internally freaking out, I looked over at Bella who was still zoned out. So, the smile had to be for me but why? Was she just trying to befriend her future best friend's sister? That was probably it, she just wants to make nice with me. I wondered if she would talk to me or wait for another time?

When the bell rang, I watched Alice leave the room without looking at me. I felt my hopes of getting to know her fade as fast as they rose. _Stupid! She wouldn't talk to you in front of everyone. Why would she come talk to you anyway? She wasn't even smiling at you in the first place, idiot._

The boy I assumed was Eric came over to us as we packed up our things. He actually did look like the overly helpful type. He might just be nervous though. I learned to take everything Book-Bella said with a grain of salt.

"You're Isabella and Emma Swan, aren't you?" he asked. I was glad that Dad used Emma when he introduced me. I've been around enough that I think the town would have realized anyway. The only reason I didn't already know half of these kids was because I mostly spend my summer on the Reservation and not in town.

"Bella," She corrected, her eyes flashing to mine at the usage of my name. Everyone within a three-seat radius turned to look at us.

"Yep, I'm Emma! Nice to meet you."

"Where are your next classes?" he asked. I could tell he was more interested in Bella by the way his face flushed when he looked at her, but I was glad that he trying to include me anyway.

Bella had to check in her bag. "Um, Government, with Jefferson, in building six."

I pulled out my schedule. "Trigonometry with Mr. Varner, building five."

I ignored the people trying to listen in. I mean, come on people, we are humans like you not aliens (or vampires).

"I'm headed toward building four, I could show you the way... I'm Eric," he added.

I smiled. "Thanks, that would be great!"

We got our jackets and headed out into the rain, which had picked up. Several people behind us were walking close enough to eavesdrop. I wanted to kick them back (_Back, back you savages!_) but I reminded myself that I was going to try to be good for at least today.

"So, this is a lot different than Phoenix, huh?" Eric asked.

"Very."

"It doesn't rain much there, does it?"

"Three or four times a year."

"It's pretty dry in the summer," I added.

"Wow, what must that be like?" he wondered.

"Sunny," Bella told him.

"You two don't look very tan."

"Our mother is part albino."

Bella looked very serious as she said this. Eric didn't seem to know what to think, his face of complete puzzlement. I couldn't help it, I started laughing so hard that I had to stop walking. One boy almost ran into me, making me laugh harder. I just couldn't help it; Eric's expression was just too funny.

"It's a joke Eric. We just don't tan much," I giggled.

"Oh, uh, sorry," he said his face a little pink.

I felt a little bad and tried to stop my laughter. "No, no, it's not your fault. Sometimes jokes are just for certain audiences, you know? I wasn't laughing at you for not getting it, your facial expression was just funny," I tried to explain.

"Yeah," Bella said, "and Emma laughs at random things that aren't even funny anyway." I tried poked her in the stomach but she dodged. Eric seemed to have cheered up anyway.

We walked back around the cafeteria, to the south buildings by the gym. I split off from the others when we got close to my building.

"Good luck," he said with a wave. Bella seemed nervous about being left alone but she'd be fine.

Walking into Trigonometry, I could already tell I was going to have trouble. My teacher, Mr. Varner, whose class I would have hated anyway because it was math and I _suck_ at math, made me stand in front of the class and introduce myself. I quickly familiarized myself with the class, making sure to seem as friendly and inviting as possible. No need to make enemies on my first day.

"Alright Miss Swan, you can sit next to Miss Hale." Mr. Varner said as one girl raised her hand. I tried my best not to freak out as I went and sat next to Rosalie. Did fate really hate me so much as to punish me this way? _Suck it up Swan, it's not that bad._

"Hi, I'm Emma Swan. Nice to meet you," I whispered, hoping to make a good first impression on the golden-blonde goddess. She was even more beautiful up close with her model-eques figure and vampiric elegance. Fighting down my blush, I reminded myself that she was way more than a pretty face.

"Rosalie Hale," she replied curtly. While most people would probably take Rosalie's manner as oddly harsh, I could understand her standoffish method completely. She was trying her best to push other humans away to protect her family's secret and keep herself safe.

While Book Bella was unable to see why Rosalie hated her, I could see that it started because of Bella's unwillingness to recognize the danger she put both herself and the Cullens in. Later, during Eclipse, Rosalie was less hateful and more distant because of Bella's inability to see things from her point of view about what Bella would lose if she became a vampire. Bella had already made up her mind. Thankfully Rosalie and Bella became friends due to the birth of Bella's daughter, the one thing that Rosalie wanted more than anything.

Certainly, Myer's failure to characterize Rosalie in one way didn't help anyone figure her out but I was hopeful about her real-life counterpart. Although she might not like me anymore than Bella, I was still going to try to be her friend. _She deserves someone in her corner, even if I'm just a human._

"I – uh, I know you must get this a lot but you're really pretty." I stumbled out the first thing that came to mind. "I mean, I'm sure plenty of people tell you that and I'm sure your more than just pretty but I just feel like I should say it so you don't think I'm crazy because of how red I am. I'm not trying to hit on you or anything, I swear, I just needed to say it!" I buried my head in my hands.

"Shoot me now," I mumbled to myself before remembering that she could hear me.

When I finally looked up Rosalie was looking me over. Her golden eyes looked mystified, like she was judging the sincerity of my statement. Turning back to her notes, I thought she was going to ignore my rambling at first.

"Thank you," she finally said. I thought I saw a small smile but it was gone as fast as it came. I finally turned back to my practically nonexistent notes. If that was the only good interaction I ever got with Rosalie, it was worth it to see her smile. Even if it was just because I was being a bumbling, dorky human.

My Chemistry teacher was a funny guy called Mr. Molina. He let me sit next to Emmett Cullen (_What the Heck?_), which was pretty sweet. I was a little nervous at first, but Emmett turned out to be great fun to work with. Turns out that everyone was too intimidated to be his partner but they didn't know how much of a sweetheart he really was. I was glad that he seemed to enjoy hanging with me as much as I did with him.

"See you tomorrow, partner?" I asked as we packed up.

"Of course, partner!" Emmett smiled. "As long as you aren't too scared of me." His tone was joking but I could tell he was worried about what I would say. Large and muscular even without his vampire nature, it wasn't too much of a surprise that people would be unsettled.

"Never!" I joked, my hand over my heart. Though my tone was playful, I made sure to get my point across. His shoulders relaxed, his smile meeting his eyes.

"Then I'll see you tomorrow."

We got a ton of strange looks as we said goodbye but I ignored it. Seeing how everyone here made it their business to watch everything I do, I decided that their opinions didn't really matter as much as I used to think.

My next class was US History with Mrs. Morse. With my luck I would get another Cullen in this class. What were the odds though, even in a school this small? Building up my courage I stepped inside. Giving my slip to the teacher, I looked around the room. No Cullens, I was in the clear!

"Okay Miss Swan, take a seat at that table, your partner should be here soon. We are working in groups today on a worksheet so if you need any help just ask," she said as she handed me the sheet. Sitting down, I looked over the worksheet. It seemed pretty simple though I don't know what the class has done yet.

As I started to fill out some of the answers I heard the chair next to mine move. Looking up, I saw another set of rich, golden eyes, thought they were darker than the others. Jasper was tall and lean with honey blond hair, as beautiful as his 'twin.' It was a small thing, but if you knew where to look you could tell that he carried himself like a fighter. I knew that the unseen scars would show that story all too well.

He seemed to freeze for a second when he looked at me, his eyes widening and I worried my scent would be too much for him. He quickly righted himself and sat down next to me. I assumed he could know my feelings just like anyone else and tried to act normal.

"Pleasure to meet you ma'am, Jasper Hale," he said in his southern accent.

"Emma Swan, nice to meet you." _I like your accent_, I want to say but I don't. It's too embarrassing and I already embarrassed myself enough with Rosalie. I think he can tell anyway because he looks amused. We hesitantly shake hands as I pretended not to notice how cold his is.

_Fate: four, Emma: zero._

Surprisingly, things were not as tense as I thought they would be. Jasper didn't seem to have very much trouble with my scent or, if he did, he was great at hiding it. He seemed to be pretty relaxed too, more so than I thought he would be. It was the same with me though; I expected to have to watch myself but I instead felt like I didn't have to worry about anything. We finished our worksheets pretty early thanks to a combination of vampire knowledge and the Arizona school system. The rest of the class we spent talking about random things that we liked. I made sure to mention that I had his sister in my math class, which seemed to surprise him. It looked like Rosalie never really talks to anyone outside of their family, if you can count my rambling about her beauty as a conversation.

By the time the class was over, I felt kind of sad about leaving. It made me feel better knowing that I would get to see him again tomorrow, though I was still confused on why Jasper and Emmett talked to me as much as they did. Most likely, Alice saw something to do with me and asked them play nice. It would make sense that they would try to be friends with their future sister-in-law instead of pushing me away to start with. Whatever the case, it didn't matter right now. For now, I had to find Bella for lunch.

I managed to find her right outside of the cafeteria with a shorter brunette who I assumed (correctly) as Jessica Stanley. She was quick to invite me to join them to her lunch table.

We sat at the end of a full table with several of her friends, who she introduced to us. I recognized a few people like Angelica and Tyler but there were others I didn't know so well. Lauren already seemed to be annoyed with us but I hoped she wouldn't say anything too bad. I didn't think I had it in me to put on any more of a brave face today.

After a few minutes of conversation with everyone trying to match faces to names I noticed that Bella had finally seen the Cullens for the first time. I couldn't blame her for staring, especially now that I could see them all together.

Now that I just watched them, I saw how different they were while being so similar. Edward – the only one I had yet to meet that went to school – was just as beautiful as the others but I had no intentions of getting in the way of his romance with Bella. In fact, I had no intention of getting involved more than I had to. The more that I changed the less that my knowledge would help. Besides, they were all paired off and I would never want to come in between any of them.

It suddenly hit me that I had been lucky that Edward wasn't paying attention to us yet. If he had and he heard my thoughts then I might have outed myself way too soon. Could he even hear my thoughts or was I immune like Bella? As much as I wished for the latter, it might be better if I was as normal as possible so that I could fly under the radar.

I didn't worry about Jasper as the lunch room was so crowded that I doubt he could pinpoint what emotions were mine unless he focused on them. Alice, on the other hand, was a complete mystery. I had no clue if she had already seen me doing something and knew or if she didn't know and wanted me close anyway. I knew she knew something but did she know that I knew about them or was I just in the future because of Bella's involvement in their lives? If she did know had she already told the others or was she hiding it for now?

The more I thought about each possible scenario the more I worked myself up. _Just take a breath and don't make any outrageous decisions that would out you or them. There is nothing more to do but stay calm and go with the flow._

As we watched them, Alice finally left with her tray of uneaten food. She glided across the room and out the back door in such a way that made me half wished she would be in my dance class just so that I could ask for lessons. Regrettably, I assumed that it would be too risky for any of them to join.

"Who are they?" Bella finally choked out to Jessica.

As she looked up to see who Bella meant, Edward's head darted up in our direction. He looked at Jessica for half a second, then me, then Bella.

He looked away quickly, but I didn't bother, trying to keep my thoughts on track. Bella flushed in embarrassment and dropped her eyes at once.

Jessica giggled in embarrassment, looking at the table. I finally turned back to her.

"That's Edward and Emmett Cullen, and Rosalie and Jasper Hale. The one who left was Alice Cullen; they all live together with Dr. Cullen and his wife." She said under her breath.

I glanced sideways at Edward who was picking a bagel to pieces in an effort to be doing something. They knew they were being watched now. I remembered that he was talking to them but couldn't recall the conversation at all. Maybe it was for the best.

I tested a little to see if Edward could hear me, reciting their names in my head as I looked at each one. His eyes flashed over again to me when I finally got to his name but moved back when he could "hear" that I had moved on to Emmett's.

"They are... very nice-looking." Bella struggled with the complement.

"Yes!" Jessica agreed with another giggle. "They're all together though – Emmett and Rosalie, and Jasper and Alice, I mean. And they live together." Her voice held shock and disapproval.

"_So?"_ I wanted to say, _"plenty of people live together that are in relationships. It's not like any of them are related. Or that it's any of your business."_ I keep quiet. No reason to start a fight so early about things that are a matter of opinion. Maybe we could talk later about why she feels this way, but there is a time and place and this is not it.

"Which ones are the Cullens?" Bella asked. "They don't look related..."

"Oh, they're not. Dr. Cullen is really young, in his twenties or early thirties. They're all adopted. The Hales are brother and sister, twins - the blondes - and they're foster children."

"They look a little old for foster children."

"They are now, Jasper and Rosalie are both eighteen, but they've been with Mrs. Cullen since they were eight. She's their aunt or something like that."

"That's really kind of nice – for them to take care of all those kids like that, when they're so young and everything."

"I guess so," Jessica admitted reluctantly. "I think that Mrs. Cullen can't have any kids, though," she added.

I was willing to let some things go, but that was not one of them. I hated this dismissal of Car- Dr. and Mrs. Cullen's compassion, especially in this way.

"Well, I don't think that should matter at all. They still took in so many kids for so long and, as far as I know, treated them like their own. That's more than I can say for some parents." I state. "Just because someone can't have kids – _which isn't any of our concern anyway_ – doesn't mean that we should think less of them or anything that they have done for others."

Jessica, and some of the others at the table, look uncomfortable now and won't look me in the eye. I feel kind of bad calling them out like this, but it needed to be done.

"Have they always lived in Forks?" Bella asked, finally breaking the tension.

"No," I stated, still a little snappish, "They just moved down two years ago from somewhere in Alaska."

"How do you know that?" Jessica asked, getting over her embarrassment. Thankfully, she sounded more curious than hostile.

"Dad told me. I'm usually around in the Summer but I've never met them in person until today," I explained, leaving out that I was partnered with them in my classes. Jessica would hound me for info if I wasn't careful.

Looking back over, Edward had met Bella's gaze, this time with curiosity and confusion in his expression. As she looked swiftly away, he turned to me. I met his gaze head on but he seemed just as confused but a little impressed. I could understand impressed as I knew many didn't defend them, but why was he confused?

"Which one is the boy with the reddish-brown hair?" Bella asked. She peeked at him from the corner of her eye, and he was now staring at her, slightly frustrated. She looked down again.

"That's Edward. He's gorgeous, of course, but don't waste your time. He doesn't date. Apparently, none of the girls here are good-looking enough for him." She frowned, obviously not over him rejecting her yet.

After a few more minutes, the four of them left the table together. They all were noticeably graceful – It drove me crazy how much I wished that I could move that easily.

Eventually, a girl named Samantha and I got up to head to dance class. She told me that I would need to see the teacher before I changed since I was new but that it was ok to come in late-ish as we all had to share the hall bathroom to change (our dancing area was sadly just an empty classroom thanks to lack of funds). We had to be back in the class by the time warm-up was over (10 or so minutes) or we would be counted as late.

The teacher, Dena Scott or Miss Dena, was super lenient and let us have a lot of fun in class. I had to introduce myself but since there were only nine others (eight girls and one boy) we all had a "name game" icebreaker during warm-up. We did have sort of a schedule that we were supposed to follow but it wasn't really something that worried any of us. It was pretty much a student-run class with Miss Dena teaching us whatever we wanted to learn. Right now, we were on Hip-Hop, but once I admitted that my favorite was Ballet we made it a part of our schedule after the Jazz-Tap combo coming up. I was fine with that as it would allow me to work on other dances.

I had thought that the class would be a little more structured with really high-level dancers and was afraid of being too far behind. After the first class, however, I didn't know whether to be relieved or disappointed. I was glad that I was not far behind the others – quite the opposite in fact. I had been taking lessons since I was young, unlike many of the others and had more technical skills than most of the class. I was a little let down at the fact that the class would not be very strict, however. I would just have to push myself more and not have to rely on my teachers and classmates to remind me to go further than I already was. _No falling behind or getting lazy. You're never going to be a professional but there is no reason not to do your best. If you want it, you got to work for it!_

Since it was Monday, I didn't have to go visit the gym or Coach Clapp. Apparently, our dance class (there was only one it seemed) didn't have to dress out but got to wear our own clothing that we brought for dancing. I would rather wear my own things anyway than have to deal with the required outfit.

When the final bell rang, I quickly changed back into my original outfit before walking to the office to return my slip. Outside of the door I saw Bella slowly walking up.

"Hey! How was your day?" I asked, slinging my arm around her shoulder and giving it a squeeze. Bella jumped, obviously not paying attention to her surroundings.

"Oh, uh, fine I guess," she said. I would not have been convinced at all even if I didn't know about the Biology Incident. "I didn't have to dress out today so I guess that's good. What about you?"

"It was great! My dance class was so nice and Miss Dena lets us play games! Samantha and June are hilarious and they know lots of good warm up routines. The other classes were pretty good too. Well, except Math, of course."

I continued to babble as we walked through the door into the warm room, hoping that Edward would have left by now. My luck was practically nonexistent today. I could feel Bella stiffen under my arm.

I had stopped mid-sentence but neither Bella or Edward seemed to notice. I pulled my sister against the wall, quickly picking up the topic of conversation. Edward was indeed trying to switch his schedule around but the red-haired lady (whose name I _still_ can't recall) was trying to talk him out of it.

The door suddenly opened again, the cold wind blowing through the room. The girl who came in placed a note in the wire basket and walked out again. But Edward Cullen's back stiffened, and he turned slowly to glare at Bella with blacked, hungry eyes.

My hands were shaking but I stepped in front of her, blocking his view. His eyes seemed to lighten a little, his mind cleared slightly. He quickly turned back to the woman.

"Never mind, then," he said hastily. "I can see that it's impossible. Thank you so much for your help." And he quickly walked out, a bit too fast for a human.

I went up to the desk, shaken, Bella's face white for once instead of red, and handed her the signed slips.

"How did your first day go, dears?" the receptionist asked.

"Fine," I answered smoothly before Bella could attempt a lie, "We're just tired."

When we got to the truck, almost all of the cars had gone. I asked to drive, not wanting my sister behind the wheel while she was so emotional. Bella handed over the keys with less of a fight than I would have expected. We sat in the car for a few minutes in silence before I started the car. I drove back home in silence, pretending not to see Bella's tears.

* * *

**Authors Note:**

**I'm late. Again. Sorry... I'm bad at this. At least it was only by one day this time. It's still the weekend.**

**Emma gets to meet the Cullens because fate (me) says so. It doesn't go too well for the most part but it isn't an absolute disaster. Also I realize I am really bad at writing dialogue. It all goes a lot smoother in my mind but what can you do.**


	4. Chapter 3: Let it snow

Sunset Chapter 3: (Open Book) Let it snow!

The next day was even better. Well, it was for me.

Today it was dark, but not quite raining. Mike had decided to take my spot next to Bella in English so I ended up sitting by myself. At least, I did before Alice came over.

"Hello! Emma, right? Jasper and Emmett told me all about you yesterday and I just _knew_ that I had to meet you. I'm Alice Cullen," She said, practically vibrating in her seat. The smaller girl looked so excited that I was afraid that she would start slipping. Alice suddenly pulled me into a hug that wasn't entirely unwanted. She was cool, but not uncomfortably cold like I was expecting.

"Sorry," she rushed out, pulling away before I could hug her back. I felt a little sad at the loss of her touch. "I just got a little too excited. It's just, I can see us as close friends, is all." She looked like she was scared that I would reject her. I could never, Alice was just too sweet for me to be mean to, even if I didn't know her that well yet.

"No, it alright! I mean, I would like to be your friend too." I said, glad that Alice thought I was worthy to be her friend. She smiled back at me as class started. We passed notes back and forth for most of the time, getting to know each other better. I was glad that it had been Alice who had taken the first move, because after the disaster the was Rosalie there was no way I was going to have to courage to talk to her.

The rest of my classes were pretty much the same as yesterday. Even though less people watched me in the halls, I could still feel them looking. I sat with the same group at lunch with Bella and spent most of the time talking to Angela. I could tell that Bella was getting better with school but I could tell that she was disappointed that Edward was no longer here. I don't know why, it's not like she would have worked up the courage to say anything to him this early anyway. Thankfully I had Jessica to help me distract her.

The only bad part of my day was when I played volleyball in Gym. I like volleyball but it's hard to enjoy it when I have to spent the entire time trying to keep the ball away from Bella. At one point I didn't dodge in time so I got hit in the back of the head.

Ignoring Bella's many apologies, I changed quickly back into my jeans and grey long-sleeve shirt. Bella hurried us from the girls' locker room to the truck, looking happy to ditch Mike. I can't say I really blame her, but she could probably just save herself a lot of trouble if she just told him that she is not interested.

When I told her such, she just preceded to go on about why he "_obviously _doesn't like me like that." _Bella, please open your eyes, people like you "like that."_

Bella started looking in her bag for our "Food Money" jar so that we could get some groceries. After my sister found out that Dad hardly cooked (though his breakfast foods were fantastic), she decided that she was going to take over the cooking. I was only too happy let the job go to her. I did, however, want to go to the store so I could pick out some of my own foods and get some things that Bella might not want.

Bella turned on the car and backed carefully into a place in the line of cars that were waiting to leave. As we waited, I saw the Cullens getting into Edward's Volvo. The only one not in the car, Alice, turned to me, waving and smiling. I smiled and gave a small wave back. Bella seemed to be too mesmerized by them to question why Alice waved at me. I'm not sure if I would have an answer for her.

The Thriftway was not far from the school, just minutes away. Bella and I (when I felt like it) would do most of the shopping in Arizona. I knew that Bella was ready to fall into her familiar pattern so I quickly split off and searched through the store for random things I wanted and found a few new things that I wanted to try out.

When we got home, I helped Bella unload groceries. I made sure to place the things that I knew Bella didn't like in a separate cabinet. As Bella started making steak and potatoes, I started on my homework, eating a small snack of jellybeans I found at the store.

"Your going to spoil your appetite if you eat too much," Bella said, grabbing her book bag.

"It's just a few Jellybeans, Jelly-Belly," I joked, throwing one in the air to catch. It managed to hit my nose but I caught it before it fell to the floor. "A little sugar won't kill you."

Rolling her eyes at me, she made her way to her room. "You're just missing out then," I muttered, finally eating the cherry bean.

When I was finished with homework, I took my bags upstairs and sent an email to Mom. She was worried that Bella never returned her emails and I reassured her that she was just settling in. I was pretty sure that today was when Bella checked her mail but I made sure to knock on her door and ask her if she had heard from Mom.

Heading down the stairs, I decided to watch random TV. _Family Feud_ was on so I watched that for a while until Dad came home.

"Bella?" my father called out when he heard her on the stairs.

"Hey, Dad, welcome home."

"Thanks." He hung up his gun belt and stepped out of his boots as Bella headed to get the food.

"Hey Dad, how was your day?" I asked as I joined them in the kitchen.

"Pretty good. Bit boring – paperwork," he explained.

"What's for dinner?" he asked cautiously. Mom was an experimental cook and though sometimes you got a delicious surprise, mostly you got fire and uneatable "food".

"Steak and potatoes," Bella answered, and he looked relieved.

Dad and I went into the living room to watch TV while Bella worked. If I had nothing to help her with, it was better that I stayed out of the way.

We got called when dinner was ready, and Dad sniffed appreciatively as he walked into the room.

"Smells good, Bell."

"Yeah Bells, nice work."

"Thanks." And que the blush.

We ate in silence for a few minutes. It wasn't uncomfortable. None of us were bothered by the quiet.

"So, how did you like school? Have either of you made any friends?" Dad asked as he was taking seconds. I reached over for more potatoes.

"Well, I have a few classes with a girl named Jessica. I sit with her friends at lunch. And there's this boy, Mike, who's very friendly. Everybody seems pretty nice." Bella shrugged.

"That must be Mike Newton. Nice kid - nice family. His dad owns the sporting goods store just outside of town. He makes a good living off all the backpackers who come through here."

"I sit with them at lunch too. They're all very nice, especially Angela Webber. There's lots of people in my dance class that are cool. June Richardson and I get along pretty well." I didn't bring up the Cullens, unsure if I could count them as friends yet, even with how friendly they were.

"Do you know the Cullen family?" Bella asked hesitantly.

"Dr. Cullen's family? Sure. Dr. Cullen's a great man."

"They... the kids... are a little different. They don't seem to fit in very well at school."

Charlie surprised us both by looking angry. I had forgotten how strongly he felt about the Cullens in the beginning.

"People in this town," he muttered. "Dr. Cullen is a brilliant surgeon who could probably work in any hospital in the world, make ten times the salary he gets here," he continued, getting louder. "We're lucky to have him - lucky that his wife wanted to live in a small town. He's an asset to the community, and all of those kids are well behaved and polite. I had my doubts, when they first moved in, with all those adopted teenagers. I thought we might have some problems with them. But they're all very mature – I haven't had one speck of trouble from any of them. That's more than I can say for the children of some folks who have lived in this town for generations. And they stick together the way a family should – camping trips every other weekend... Just because they're newcomers, people have to talk."

I could feel Bella mentally backpedal. "They seemed nice enough to me. I just noticed they kept to themselves. They're all very attractive," She added, trying to be more complimentary.

"You should see the doctor," Charlie said, laughing. "It's a good thing he's happily married. A lot of the nurses at the hospital have a hard time concentrating on their work with him around."

We lapsed back into silence as we finished eating. He cleared the table while I started on the dishes, letting Bella head up to her room. She made the food, I could at least clean up. Dad went back to the TV, and after I finished washing the dishes I went to my room to change and start on one of our assigned reading. A little while later I went to bed.

The rest of the week was uneventful. By Friday I was able to recognize, but definitely not name, almost all the students at school. That surprised me as I thought there would be more kids than there were. In Gym, the kids learned not to pass Bella the ball and to step quickly in front of her if I was not there.

Alice, Jasper, and Emmett continued to talk to me. We didn't go in to anything deep but it was nice to get to know them a little more than "vampires who don't eat people." It made them more real. Rosalie didn't talk to me but she was never outright aggressive either. I counted it as a win.

As expected, Edward didn't come back to school. Every day at lunch Bella would eye their table until he failed to appear. On Thursday I told Bella that Alice had said that Edward had the flu and wouldn't be back until next week. That was a lie, of course, but now Edward had a cover so I hoped the Cullens would just go with it. She seemed a mixture of disappointed and relieved. I didn't know if I should feel annoyed or not that she cared enough about someone she hadn't even spoken to.

Lunchtime conversation mostly it centered around a trip to La Push in two weeks that Mike was putting together. We were invited and I agreed to go, glad to finally have a time to go back to First Beach and see some old friends.

Our first weekend here was pretty boring if I'm honest. Charlie worked most of the weekend and Bella spent most of the time cleaning the house or doing homework. I finished my homework on Friday and spent most of Saturday practicing dance in the backyard or watching trash TV while reading. On Sunday Bella drove us to the library. She wasn't really interested in anything there but I had a card and checked out an older movie I had wanted to watch.

When Monday finally rolled around, I was glad if just to see some of my new friends. It was getting colder but not raining yet. In English, Mike took his now semi-permanent seat next to my sister so I sat by Alice again.

"Good Morning! Sleep well?" I joked as I sat down.

Alice hummed but didn't answer. Had my joke been that bad? Well, technically she didn't know I was joking but it was kind of a two-sided joke for the both of us. It was unlike her to be this quiet. She normally was so full of cheer. Had something happen this weekend?

I didn't get a chance to ask as class got started. I was thankful that I had done some of the reading since we had a pop quiz on Wuthering Heights. I'm sure Bella had an easy time but some of the questions I had to think about more than I would like to admit.

Alice seemed to disappear right after class ended so I didn't get to talk to her like I wanted to. Instead, I walked out with Bella and Mike only to see tons of people staring at the sky in wonder. The strong wind blew my hair around and I couldn't help but let out laugh of delight.

"Wow," Mike said. "It's snowing."

"Ew." Bella scrunched up her nose in disgust. I rolled my eyes and bit back my huff.

He looked surprised. "Don't you like snow?"

"No," I cut in, "Bella hates anything fun or exciting. I'm going to go mess around. See you later!" I ran away before Bella could yell at me. She could get her revenge later but she kind of deserved it. Who wanted to be so down about _snow_? This was great! I had never seen it before in person. It was always too hot in the summer for anything more than rain. I knew it wouldn't last the day so I _refused_ to waste the time I had with it now.

I managed to have some sort of snow ball fight with a few kids as I made my way to and from my different classes. I even managed to get Emmett in the back before Chemistry. This only resulted in me getting hit while trying to run away after class. I saw Bella at one point trying to fend off snowballs with her binder. I almost hit her myself but decided not to be too cruel. I would have to ride home with her, after all.

Giggling and trying to get snow out of my hair, I made my way to my History class. Thankfully, I was not the only one covered in snow and the teacher didn't yell at us. Instead she only sighed, probably in regret for the poor janitors who would have to up clean after us.

"Attention, class," she started, "I am going to bet that by the looks on your faces that it would be near impossible to try to teach anything today. Therefore, you will all be allowed a study day today. Make sure you are all ready to learn tomorrow." The end of her sentence was mostly cut off by the sudden eruption of cheers. _At least the teachers know when there is no hope._

"So, you like the snow?" Jasper asked, surprising me. I half expected that he would ignore me like Alice. _Emmett talked to me, if less than normal. It might not have had anything to do with me. Most likely a Bella and Edward thing._

"Yeah! I've never seen snow in real life before now. It's really fun to play with. How did you know?" I questioned.

He looked me over before reaching towards my hair. I was confused until he pulled his hand back to reveal some snow I had missed. "Other than being covered in snow, I saw you earlier with Emmett. He said that I was to tell you that he wants a real fight next chance you both get."

I smirked. "Tell him to bring it! I'd love to have a real snowball fight." Okay, so it might not be a good idea to get into a fight (even if it was with snow) with a vampire. Especially if said vampire was the strongest of the coven. But he would go easy on the human, right? Probably.

Well, no one said I was smart.

Jasper let out a laugh at my declaration of war against his brother. My mind seemed to jam and I had to remind myself to breath. How in the living hell does someone's _laugh_ sound hot? Adding in his accent and good looks and I had to physically restrain myself from melting into a puddle of goo. _Good on you Alice, you sure know how to choose them._

"What about you? I know you all lived in Alaska before coming here. It must have been even colder than Forks." I tried to continue the conversation the best I could but didn't want to tread too deep into dangerous territory. Thankfully, even with my jumbled mind I seemed to be doing okay.

"It's alright. Colder, for sure, with a lot more snow. But, as you can tell, I used to live in the south." I felt like he was poking fun of me now. He had to know, he could _literally_ feel my emotions. "Sometimes I miss the warmth. Do you miss Arizona at all?"

"Sometimes. More like I miss my Mother. But I like Forks and living with my Dad. Arizona just wasn't…" _Home._ "Where I needed to be." I tried to cover up my emotions but I don't think I did a good job at all. Taking a breath, I continued before I could dwell. "I think the change is worse on my sister than anything."

"Really? I didn't know."

I squinted at him. "You know, I can't tell if your serious or just messing with me."

Jasper raised a brow. Nope, still can't tell.

"Why did she come here, then? I can tell you want to be here but why didn't she stay behind if she dislikes it here so much?"

"It's... complicated," I said, stealing Bella's line. And it was, sort of. But I didn't feel the need to hide in the way that she did. Besides, I already knew more about him than he did about me. It was only right to share a bit. That's what friends do anyway, right? And we were friends or at least getting there. We would be eventually. Hopefully.

"Mom got remarried last September. Phil's nice enough and they wouldn't have minded us around but he travels a lot. Plays ball, minor league. You've probably never heard of him. Mom wanted to be with him but she had to stay with us. So, we sent ourselves here. I wanted to live with Dad anyway so it wasn't a big deal to me. Bella, on the other hand, treats this like some self-imposed exile." I couldn't help the eye roll. "She sent herself somewhere where she _knew_ she would be unhappy yet she _refuses_ to let people help her." I let out a sigh of frustration before turning red.

_Oh God, had I just ranted to Jasper about my sister? He barely knew me or her, he didn't care about all if this. Hell, he didn't deserve to be on the end of this chatter of endless stupidity. Especially when all we were going to do was mess up his life in the incoming few years._

"I... I'm sorry about that." I apologized, "Sometimes I tend to say more than I mean to. You shouldn't have been forced to deal with any of that. Can we just forget I said anything?"

Jasper slid his hands over mine and unfolded them from the fists they had become. His hands were cold and if I didn't know any better, I would have said it was from the snow.

"Hey," he said softly, "It's okay, I understand. I live with Rosalie and I'm sure you can tell, she isn't always one for sunshine and rainbows. The others aren't any better." His tone was more playful now. "You should see Emmett and Edward when they fight. If it goes on long enough, it can lead to some serious damage to the house. Esme gets upset then it becomes a huge deal that can go on for days…" He fake-shivered, apparently remembering the last family argument. I tried not to laugh but couldn't hold back a tiny smile.

"Look, what I'm trying to say is that nobody is perfect and even if you say something about your sister, you still love her. I'll be here if you ever just want to talk, even if it's not about her. I might have a few stories to share of my own in turn." At that, he gave me a wink.

"Thank you," was all I could get out before the bell rung to signal the end of class. Jasper was gone before I could say anything else.

/-/

I was in a daze as I made my way to lunch, still not really believing what had just happened. I had done something stupid and had expected Jasper to laugh or not care. Instead he had been _nice_. I was pushed out my thoughts when a snowball hit me in the side. Not expecting it, I slipped and fell into a small hill of snow that once was someone else's attempt at a snowman. Rip snowman, you will be missed. Wiping the snow out of my face, I looked around to see Mike laughing at me.

"Ha, ha," I mocked him as I pushed myself out of the powder. "Very funny. Don't think I'm not going to get you back."

"I'd like to see you try," he smirked as we walked towards Jessica and Bella, who had been standing off to the side of the cafeteria building.

Lunch turned out to be less interesting than I thought it would with the return of Edward. Bella was quiet and hardly ate anything as I tried to stay out of her business. She needed to deal with him on her own.

The Cullens were actually looking, well, _happy_ for once. They were all laughing at the Alice-caused snow that had ended up in each boy's hair. Both girls were leaning away from Emmett as he attempted to act like a dog and shake out the droplets on them. It was, dare I say it, _normal_ in comparison to how they usually acted in school. I felt a pleasant warmth wash over me as I watched this family moment but forced myself to look away. I felt like a nosy outsider, peering into a world that I would never be a part of.

"Bella, what are you staring at?" Jessica intruded, her eyes going to the table. Bella dropped her head. I looked back over to Edward. He looked curious and unsatisfied, just like the last time I saw him.

"Edward Cullen is staring at you," Jessica giggled.

"He doesn't look angry, does he?"

"No," she said, sounding confused by Bella's question. "Should he be?"

"I don't think he likes me," She confided. She put my head down on her arm.

"The Cullens don't like anybody... well, they don't notice anybody enough to like them. But he's still staring at you." Guess wind of my interactions still hadn't reached her yet. Good, I wanted as much time to stay out of the gossip mill as possible before its inevitable betrayal.

"Stop looking at him," She hissed.

We both snickered at this, but she looked away. Mike jumped in on our silence to tell us about the "Super Epic Battle of the Blizzard" that was happening after school. Even though I knew the snow would be long-gone by then, I still agreed alongside Jessica. I hoped that maybe this one time, I'd be wrong about upcoming events.

Unfortunately, fate was still being a jerk. As we walked to the door everyone seemed to groan in unison. The rain had come and washed all of the snow away to my displeasure. Mike seemed to agree with me as he was still complaining as I broke off from the group.

The rest of the day was pretty normal. Other than some angry comments about the lack of snow, nothing seemed too out of the ordinary. Since it was Monday, I didn't go to the gym so I just had to trust that Mike could handle Bella without me.

The rain had become mist by the time class was over. Bella seemed a lot happier than earlier as we climbed into the car.

"Anything good happen today?" I asked.

Bella hesitated before shaking her head. "No, not really. Just glad the snow is over with."

I hummed in acceptance of her answer. While I would have liked for her to share about Edward, I could understand her wanting to keep it for herself. I hadn't told her about Jasper after all.

"_But you _do_ know, don't you?"_ My mind told me. _"She can _never_ have anything to herself because you _always_ know. You're being selfish, always knowing but never telling."_

"Shut up," I mumbled to the window, my eyes closing as my forehead pressed into the cold window glass. "Just shut up."

My angst was ruined as the truck jerked backwards before stopping suddenly, throwing me back into my seat.

"Bells, what the heck?"

"Sorry," She replied distractedly as we finally made our way (carefully this time!) out of the parking spot. Looking over, I could see Edward laughing at us. I made sure to think something colorful for him as we rode off.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Snow time fun is sadly cut short and I realized that I could have put more dialogue than I did. Also I have no clue where that self-hate came from in the last part.**

***Squints at Emma and whispers, "_What are you doing sweetheart? I want you to be happy and you pull out that."*_**


	5. Chapter 4: Science and Angst

Sunset Chapter 4: (Phenomenon) When science is actually useful and the angst train crashes

The next morning, I woke up slightly confused. Light was coming in from my window, which was not very common. Since it was almost always cloudy, most of the time the sun didn't bother making an appearance.

Getting up and going to the window, I looked out in delight. Snow had covered the yard while I had slept, letting everything become a winter wonderland. My amazement soon fell away to horror when I realized what day it was. Today was the day of the car accident.

I unconsciously got ready as I thought over any plans that I could make. I spent a good bit of time trying to remember everything about today and finding ways to stop Bella from being hurt without changing the timeline too much. Some were stupid and would never work while others were actually more plausible.

It was funny (not really) how it was easy for me to think (and avoid thinking) about the accident when it was so far away. Now that the day had come, however, I was a nervous mess.

"Pick a plan, stick to it," I repeated to myself as I thought through all of the different scenarios that could happen.

Deciding to pull my hair in a ponytail today so that it could stay out of my way, I finally looked at my outfit. Black converse, blue jeans, and a tan shirt with "Hollywood California" written on it in a dark blue. I was actually glad that I had chosen this as the shirt was older and I wouldn't mind getting (blood) anything on it if something went wrong. It was comfy and I could move easily in it too (if I needed to move quickly), a plus.

Dad was already gone by the time Bella and I were up. I felt a little sick so I didn't end up eating anything for breakfast. I guess I was acting odd because Bella kept sending me weird looks. The looks increased when I asked to drive today. I was glad that I had dismissed my idea of forcing Bella to miss school all together.

My sister raised an eyebrow. "Okay, what's going on?"

"Nothing," I waved her off with a fake smile, "I just know that you probably don't want to drive with the ice and all. I don't mind."

"…Alright, I guess," she said as she handed me the keys. I let out a breath when her back was turned. Maybe I could get through with this after all.

We both carefully made our way down the icy driveway and I avoided making a joke about both of our lack of balance. I even managed to catch Bella before she ripped off the side mirror.

As I drove to school, I distracted myself by focusing on the road, only making light conversation with Bella. I know she was trying to avoid thinking bad thoughts as well, even if they were different ones. The truck, thankfully, was doing fine with the roads even as I drove slowly. I mentally thanked Dad for the snow chains.

Once we got to the school, I made my way over to an area that Bella normally didn't park in. My plan was that since we tended to park in the same area, if I went somewhere slightly different, we would be out of the way of danger. Bella barely noticed and I assumed she had finally seen what Dad did with the truck.

Once Bella got out, I took a second to myself. Taking a few deep breaths to calm myself, I got out of the cab. Stepping out, I had to grab the bed of the truck so to not fall. Seems that the parking space, just like the rest of the parking lot, was covered in ice. For a minute I wished I had grabbed more than just my jacket to keep me warm (which was still in my bag in the car). Carefully, I made my way over to Bella, who seemed to be having a moment with the tires.

A high-pitched screech sounded out and I almost (ironically (_no_)) froze as I spotted the out-of-control car heading toward us.

"_No, no, no!"_ was the only thought I had as the adrenaline hit me. Bella was right, everything seemed to be happening in fast forward. Hurriedly reaching out, I grabbed Bella's arm in an attempt to pull her away from the back of the truck. Several things seemed to happen at once.

I pulled with all of my might and Bella appeared to skate towards me. I might have put _too_ much strength as the ice slide her past me and a car down. Her lack of balance added with the ice, it was no surprise when she fell. I thought I could hear the light "thud" of her head hitting the ground as she skidded another half-car length. Half of me was worried about her head injury while the other held relief that she was far enough away to be safe.

Everything turned to fear in a second when I realized what had happened. My momentum on the ice had catapulted me into where my sister was just standing. Meaning I was about to be hit. Adding to that, when I tried to stop myself, I just ended up throwing myself towards the ground.

_Motherfucker, I should have taken physics._

When I hit the ground, pain exploded in my left shoulder. I couldn't tell if it was a "pop" or a "crack," but either way, my vision might have blackened for a few seconds.

_Holy_ – Did I _break_ it? Of all of the –

All of that happened in the span of a few seconds as the van was _still coming towards me._ All I could do was lay on the ice (cold, it was so cold on my skin) as I tried not to cry (from pain or fear? Both?). I distantly wondered if it would hurt to die or if it would be almost instant. Twice I would die at seventeen. Would it be anything like the first time (would I remember?)?

Suddenly something solid was pinning me to the ground. Two petite, pale hands shot out and the van shuddered to a stop a foot from my face, the small hands creating a deep dent into the dark blue vehicle. Her hands blurred as she grabbed me, moving my legs so that the van wouldn't crush them when it landed exactly where they were moments ago.

Almost dream-like, I looked over to Bella. Edward seemed to be making sure she stayed down. Good, no need to hurt herself further. Edward looked over, seeming more worried than I had ever seen him.

A cold (man it was cold, was I still on the ice?) (no, not as bad, nice cold) hand had grabbed my face and pushed it so I was facing her. Alice was sitting above me and looked anxious. It was then I realized she was talking to me.

"Emma? Emmie? Can you hear me?" Emmie? No one had ever called me that before except my Dad. I kind of liked it.

"Hey… Alice. I'm okay… I think I'm in shock." My words seemed to relieve her somewhat. The words felt kind of heavy, like fog. Was fog heavy? Thick?

"Hey, I need you to look at me." Yes, don't wonder. Look at the pretty girl.

"Your pretty," I muttered. Alice seemed to want to laugh. I wish I could hear her laugh. Would it be as wonderful as Jasper's?

"I think you have a concussion and your arm is messed up a bit. An ambulance is on its way, okay? I just need you to stay awake for me? Can you do that sweetheart?" Sweetheart? I liked that one too. I really must have hit my head.

"That makes sense… thanks for saving me…"

A beat of silence (more, less?) (not silence there was yelling). It was loud (the yelling, the silence) (how was silence loud?).

"I'm just glad that Edward and I were right next to you two." Alice's smile was a little tight as she looked over my head. Bella must be arguing with Edward.

I went to go nod but Alice's hand stopped me. A second later I understood why that was not a good idea. More thanks to Alice.

"Yeah… good for – Are you okay?" I asked suddenly worried (why was I worried?). Alice seemed confused (me too).

"Why wouldn't I be?" It came to me why I was bothered.

"The blood…" Alice stiffened (was it my words, was it Mike, was it _me_), "Mike – the window glass – sorry, I –" suddenly I forgot what I was talking about.

"…What was I saying?" I asked.

Alice (I think it was her) (of course it was her, _of course_) seemed to have disappeared. Was I the cause or did it (what was it again?) get to her finally? Was she even here (yes, no, YES)?

I don't remember much of what happened between getting off the ice and being put onto the stretcher. I think I blacked out again. I tried to find Alice and Edward but Alice seemed to have vanished all together. Edward was making sure they kept Bella on the gurney. I didn't have the energy to fight it and didn't really want to. Alice wanted me to go with them so I would. I think I needed the help anyway.

Dad arrived before they could leave. He saw Bella first and went over to her in a panic. He seemed to realize that I was on the other stretcher and ran over.

"Emma, it will be alright. They are going to take you to the hospital. I'll be there a soon as I can."

"Hi Dad… love you" I made out. That just seemed to make him want to cry more.

"I love you too, honey." Then he pushed gently away by an EMT.

All of the noise around me seemed to be fading in and out. I could make out the Cullens looking over from a distance. Rosalie and Emmett seemed to both look angry. Surprisingly, they also seemed a little concerned. Jasper was gone. Most likely with Alice, wherever they were.

I started feeling better as we drove to the hospital. By "better" I meant that I stopped almost passing out and started feeling more pain in my arm.

Bella and I ended up in beds next to each other while the staff ran around a bit. Tyler Crowley was finally brought into the bed on the other side of Bella a few minutes later.

"Bella, Emma, I'm so sorry!"

"I'm fine, Tyler – you look awful, are you all right?"

I didn't bother to answer, hoping that he would forget about me. It seemed to work.

As they spoke, nurses began unwinding his bloody bandages, exposing the shallow cuts all over his forehead and left cheek.

He ignored her. "I thought I was going to kill you! I was going too fast, and I hit the ice wrong..." He winced as one nurse started dabbing at his face.

"Don't worry about it; you missed us."

"How did you get out of the way so fast? You were there, and then you were gone..."

"Umm... Edward pulled us out of the way." Well, Bells _I_ actually pulled you but whatever. Also, what about Alice? Did Bella not see her?

He looked confused. "Who?"

"Edward Cullen – he was standing next to us," I finally said. Bella nodded but looked like she wanted to question me.

"Cullen? I didn't see him... wow, it was all so fast, I guess. Is he okay?"

"I think so. Edward's here somewhere, but they didn't make him use a stretcher."

They wheeled me away then, to X-ray my head and shoulder. Alice was right. They said I had a concussion and a dislocated shoulder. They quickly put my shoulder back into place and I was glad when the pain lessened afterwards. They wanted me to wait for a doctor but I was sure that I would probably be let go in a bit.

Now trapped in the ER, we waited, harassed by Tyler's constant apologies to make it up to us. I refused to talk to him and he seemed to turn all of his guilt to Bella. My head seemed to get better the longer I rested and they had given me a sling to take the weight off my arm. They had also given me a few painkillers and I assumed I would have to continue to use them until my shoulder got better. I sighed as I thought about all of the time it would talk for me to get back to normal.

After about half an hour, Edward came in quietly. I gave him a small wave with my non-injured arm and got a hesitant one back. I had nothing against Edward really, and though I didn't agree with everything he did, I wanted to be his friend too. That wouldn't stop me from telling him how I really felt when he messed up. I was really glad that he was there for my sister today.

He seemed pleased the longer I thought. Good, got my message across. Turning his attention to Bella, he smirked.

"Is she sleeping?" He asked. Her eyes flew open from where she was pretending to sleep and she glared at him. Rude much, he helped save you.

"Hey, Edward, I'm really sorry –" Tyler began.

Edward lifted a hand to stop him.

"No blood, no foul," he said, flashing his gleaming teeth. He moved to sit on the edge of Tyler's bed and smirked again.

"So, what's the verdict?" he asked, eyes on Bella.

"There's nothing wrong with me at all, but they won't let me go," Bella complained. "How come you aren't strapped to a gurney like the rest of us?"

"It's all about who you know," he answered. "But don't worry, I came to spring you."

When Carlisle came out from around the corner, I was proud that I could control my reaction. He was as good looking as the rest of them, as pale too. His blonde hair and young face made me see why the nurses would have a hard time around him. I knew he would never leave his wife though.

Even if I didn't know him, I could tell by the way he looked at his son. Love seemed to radiate off him and even though I loved my dad, I wouldn't mind having Carlisle fill that role. He just seemed very fatherly in this moment. Edward shifted towards the area between Bella and I.

"So, Miss Swan," Dr. Cullen said to me, "how are you feeling?"

"Better," I replied, "My head and my arm is in less pain with the medicine the nurses gave me."

Doctor Cullen nodded as he looked at my x-rays on the board. He told me that I would have to take some medicine for a while and would speak to my Dad about it. Thankfully, after checking my head, he said that I would be fine to go.

Then he turned to Bella.

"Your X-rays look good," he said. "Does your head hurt? Edward said you hit it pretty hard."

"It's fine," She repeated with a sigh, throwing a quick scowl toward Edward.

He checked her head and we had the "tender head" exchange.

"Well, your father is in the waiting room – you can both go home with him now. But come back if you feel dizzy or have trouble with your eyesight at all."

"Can't I go back to school?" Bella asked.

"Maybe you should take it easy today."

She glanced at Edward. "Does he get to go to school?"

"Someone has to spread the good news that we survived," Edward said smugly.

"Actually," Dr. Cullen corrected, "most of the school seems to be in the waiting room."

"Oh no," She moaned, covering her face. I made a face, not too happy with that myself.

Dr. Cullen raised his eyebrows. "Do you want to stay?"

"No, no!" She insisted, throwing her legs over the side of the bed and hopping down quickly. Of course, she staggered, and Dr. Cullen caught her. He looked concerned.

"I'm fine," She assured him again.

I got missed some of the exchange as I got out of my own bed, going slowly to make sure that I wouldn't aggravate my injuries.

"It sounds like you were both extremely lucky," Dr. Cullen said, smiling as he signed our charts off.

"Lucky Edward happened to be standing next to me," Bella amended with a hard glance.

"And Alice, she did a lot to save me," I added quietly, making sure that Tyler and Bella wouldn't be able to hear.

"Oh, well, yes," Dr. Cullen agreed, suddenly occupied with the papers in front of him. Then he looked away towards Tyler and walked to the next bed. I quietly let out a laugh, not loud enough for Bella or Tyler to hear but I'm sure the other two could.

"I'm afraid that you'll have to stay with us just a little bit longer," he said to Tyler, and began checking his cuts.

As soon as the doctor's back was turned, Bella moved to Edward's side.

"Can I talk to you for a minute?" She hissed under her breath. He took a step back from her, his jaw suddenly clenched. I left right before their fighting could get worse. I wasn't needed here.

Trying to make my way around the hospital was actually more difficult than I imagined it to be. I think I passed the same hallway three times before I decided it was time to ask for directions. Reaching another intersection, I found someone I wasn't expecting.

"Jasper?" I questioned as I saw the honey-blonde. I must have surprised him as he almost jumped and turned around quickly. Behind him were two others. "Rosalie, Emmett. What are you all doing here?"

Rosalie crossed her arms and gave me something that was a little less than a glare. Emmett had a hand on Rosalie's shoulder but seemed to be happy to see me. Jasper seemed to not know whether to be relieved, angry, or scared. He chose angry.

"What the hell, Emma. Why would you do something like that? You were nearly _killed_."

"I…" What was I to say? I'm sorry? I don't know why but I started to get mad. "It's not like I _chose_ to almost get hit, Jasper. You should ask Crowley why he thought driving like that was a good idea."

His face turned apologetic and my anger disappeared. He must have been projecting.

"I know. I'm sorry, I just… I didn't want to lose you. You're one of the only people besides my family that I can call a friend." Oh. Wow.

I relaxed myself the best I could and slowly reached out. When he didn't make a move to pull away, I gave him a hug. I tried to ignore Rosalie and Emmett but it was still awkward with my arm.

"Lets just both be glad that Alice and Edward were so close to Bella and I. Otherwise things could have been worse." _A lot worse._ We both pulled back.

"Tell her thank you, will you? And Edward too," I said. Guilt hit me when I realized that I had the chance to tell him to his face but was too nervous. "I should have done it earlier but… I was a little out of it." Excuses. "Make sure Alice is alright for me? She ran off earlier."

"Of course." Jasper's mood changed. "I think you should go find your dad, he must be worried for you." He then gave me some directions to get back to the waiting room. I didn't stick around long enough after that to see what the problem was. It probably had something to do with me or Bella and if so, it would be best if I was absent from the scene. It was only later I realized that I had never told him I was lost.

Using Jasper's directions, I was quickly able to make my way to the exit. I almost facepalmed when I realized that it was right off the room I had started in.

Making my way through the crowd was harder than I liked but they stayed back when they realized my arm was in a sling. Dad quickly rushed to my side when he saw me.

"The doctor gave me your medicine and told me you'll probably be fine to sleep by tonight. Bella is already in the car. You ready to head out?"

"Let's go," I urged, not wanting to stay with all of the people. Dad lead me to the exit as I waved off Jessica and the others. Once we got to the car, Dad gave me a hug, making sure to watch for my arm. I sunk into his hold.

"Don't ever do that again," He muttered into my hair.

"No promises, but I'll try."

When we got to the house, Charlie finally gave the bad news.

"Um... you'll need to call Renée." He hung his head, guilty.

Bella was appalled. "You told Mom!"

"Sorry."

I just sighed. It would be a long phone call.

My mom was in hysterics, of course. I didn't blame her. With the phone on speaker, we spent a while calming her down. She begged us to come "home" – forgetting the fact that she was not even at the house. Unknowing that Forks was my home, that it would become Bella's in only a few months or less. Her requests were easily denied by the both of us.

While Bella went to bed early, I stayed up later in order to make sure that my head would be okay. Dad was more hovering than I had ever seen him. I didn't mind as much as Bella, knowing that he only loved us. He was trying to show that he cared. It was sweet.

Later that night I struggled to sleep, too many thoughts in my head. Once I started making connections, I couldn't stop.

Was that why Alice saved me and why she looked so scared? Why Jasper was angry that I put myself in danger? Because they cared? But _why_? I could see them only wanting to know me because of Bella but there was no reason to be so nice. To get to know me past a "Hello" and "Goodbye." To look so worried about my injuries. To _care_ about me because of _me_.

I didn't deserve that. Especially because I put myself into this situation. I knew what would happen today and I made the choice to throw myself into harm's way.

I could have skipped school or gotten away but I stayed for Bella. Who was fine while I was hurt. Who could shake it off and dream of Edward while I woke up in the middle of the night, night after night. Nightmare after nightmare of what could have happened if Alice hadn't intervened. Who was more concerned about theories of the Cullen's supernatural abilities while I worried about my arm and making sure I could get it back to normal.

It was alright though. I chose this. I could live through it fine. I just had to focus on Bella. Keep her safe the best I can. Hope that the Cullens see that she is the one who they need to focus on. She was the one who was worth it. I don't matter. Not with them. And as much as I pretended, I never would.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Happy Fathers Day! There are a few things I've decided to go over in this chapter, starting with the actual chapter itself.**

**So the beginning of this I am SO proud of, I loved the potential in the car crash scene and knew exactly where I was going with it. I honestly love what I wrote. Then I got to the hospital and had no clue what to do. Tried to have a conversation but that was cut short. Emma never really knew why but I imagine that Edward was coming over, mad because of Bella and Jasper wanted her out of there so they could deal with him. Also I think that Alice would have gone off to hide/hunt in the woods because otherwise she would have been all protective over Emma and/or try to kill Tyler (for many reasons). Both of those things would have been not so good in this current situation.**

**That end though? The one you just read? No clue what happened there. I had no plan for the end, nothing, and then Emma busted through my wall riding the angst train and I didn't even realized until I was reading it back over. Emma. HONEY STOP. I didn't plan for you to be so down on yourself, I SWEAR.**

**The second thing I wanted to mention was the absolutely wonderful comments you are all giving me. I just want to thank you all so much for your support! In light of all of the questions you guys have about powers, I thought I would give some more details. I was going to wait until we reached the "reveal of the vampires" part, but I haven't even gotten that far in writing yet so I am just going to do it now.**

**Emma is not a shield, but she does have a power. Jasper's powers work like normal. Alice's powers do too but she does not know about Emma's past life or that Emma knows future events. Alice can only see the future (not the past) so she can see the choices people will make/are making but she might not know WHY they make those choices (like if, for instance, they know the future). ****I tried to hint at this during the cafeteria scene during the "first sight," but Edward can read Emma's mind. Neither of them know this yet, but Edward can not read Emma's mind when she is thinking about Future events. He can know about them after they happen or during (but that's a little grey) but not before. When that happens, it is like static on a TV.**

**Now, Emma's real power I don't really have a name for yet but I'm calling it a "Masker" or "Cloak" right now (if you guys have any suggestions, leave them in the comments). It's like the opposite of a Tracker, like James is. When/if she becomes a vampire, Emma will have the ability to hide scents from other vampires. Right now, Emma can only hide her own scent and this is part of the reason why the Cullens have an easier time around her than other humans. I don't have the fine details right now, but that's ok (especially when Meyer plays fast and loose with her own world half of the time).**

**Last thing, I am hoping to reveal that Emma knows the future, but I wasn't sure when it would be. Debating about if it would be right after they met James or if I would hold off until Eclipse or what. Let me know if you guys have a time you would like and I'll think about when I think would be the best time. Thanks for reading all of this, you all have a good week!**


	6. Chapter 5: To dance or not dance

Sunset Chapter 5: (Invitations) To dance or not to dance?

While Bella would spend the next few weeks dreaming of Edward, my dreams tended to be darker in nature. While my nightmares of the accident were starting to fade, they continued to still rattle me from time to time. I briefly wondered at one point if Edward could hear my restlessness from where he (very creepily) watched my sister at night. Thankfully, for both of our sakes, I would never have to ask. I was mostly thankful for the distractions of day, even if it included unwanted attention.

For the next of the week, to Bella's uttermost horror, we became the center of attention. Tyler Crowley was an even bigger pain than I had originally thought him to be, if that was even possible. He followed us to and from classes and kept bringing up how all he wanted was to make amends. I eventually told him, in the most civil way I could, that I would rather him leave me alone.

When that failed to work, I told him in less civilized terms to fuck off.

Shortly after that he turned his attention towards my sister. Though he would still bother me to an extent it became more manageable. His instant manner made me glad that Mike and Eric hadn't decided to turn their attentions towards me as well. As it was, they were both fighting over Bella, even if she refused to see it.

Bella and I stuck to our story that Edward was right besides us and nothing abnormal happened at all, no way, Jose. Even with Bella's bad and my almost passable lying skills no one seemed to question us. Or really care at all, in fact. Mostly people just commented how they hadn't seen him at all. No one mentioned Alice. I made sure to keep it that way.

The Cullens started to avoid me after that or at least they didn't talk to me. Alice moved desks all together and I started to sit with some other kid I didn't really talk to. Emmett became quieter and only spoke to me when he had to. Rosalie was the only one who didn't really change much since we never really spoke. It was actually a relief that one thing hadn't changed. Edward was the only one that I didn't have a class with so I could only assume that he was ignoring Bella as well.

I'd later be proven correct when I would become her improve therapist about everything to do with the Cullens and Edward. But mostly Edward.

When I got to History that first day, the trend continued. Jasper hadn't moved desks at least. When class ended, he almost ran in an attempt to get out of the room. Sighing, I made to pack back up only to see a piece of paper on my notebook.

_Sorry. – J_

I huffed and angrily stuffed my papers in my bag. _Sorry?_ Like geez, you could at least give me _something_ Jasper. I debated on whether or not to throw it away before placing it into one of the lesser used pockets. It was partly an apology. I'd force the rest out of him and the others (and an explanation!) when everything died down. From what I could guess, it probably boiled down to keeping their secret and something to do with Edward. Because of-freaking-course it would.

After lunch was even less fun. Because of my shoulder injury I was restricted to light stretching and beginner moves. I was annoyed since I knew that I could do more but relented. They could have banned me from participating at all. Even better, I had hurt my nondominated arm so I could still write notes and do assignments in Dance and Gym when they would do things that I was banned from. Which included the entirety of Gym.

My arm seemed to be healing at a faster rate than I thought it would. It probably had something to do with the physics in this world. Healing faster, allowing the Cullens to go unnoticed like they had, the weird passage of time while traveling, odd physics that would sometimes not work in the way the world dictated it should, it was all to do with the weird way the world functioned, amongst other things. Maybe it had to do with the fact that there were supernatural elements that affected everything? All I know is that it was helping to heal my arm faster, for which I was glad.

After a while of taking it easy, I was to where I was before and was able to be actively involved in everything again. Unfortunately, the Cullens were still avoiding me. It was starting to wear on me, actually. Even Bella had noticed but was quickly reassured. I mean, there was nothing wrong with me. I was fine. Just a little lonely, but it was nothing to be worried about. I had Dad and Bella and the other kids at school. Soon I would get to hang out with the La Plush kids too since the snow had passed. I'd be fine.

It was Jessica that alerted Bella and I to the girls' choice dance that was coming up in two weeks. I hadn't yet decided if I wanted to go. Bella would obviously be against it but I was up for a party every once in a while. The only person I would think of asking was actively avoiding me. The other one I didn't want to think of and pushed the thought away.

Over the next few days I did my best to avoid the boys at the school who seemed to think that crowding around me was the best way to get a date to the dance. Once word got around that the Swan twins didn't have dates, we became even more scrutinized. Bella and I would work together to keep each other safe from their clutches and for once I was glad that we could have something to bring us together.

The day that Mike was meant to agree to go to the dance with Jessica seemed to be the turning point. I had two boys hint at me that they wanted me to ask them before second period. A third seemed to want to ask in Chemistry but as he walked towards me, his face went pale and he sat back down.

Turning around I saw Emmett looking a little _too_ innocent. Emmett and Jasper had been slowly opening back up to me the more it seemed like I wasn't going to demand answers or do anything crazy. Rosalie was the same, like always. Alice, sadly, was still keeping her distance.

"What?" I raised an eyebrow.

"Did you just scare off that poor boy?"

"Who, me? Never," Emmett replied, fake batting his eyes, "But if I somehow _did_ have something to do with him then I would think a thank you would be in order."

I put on a fake pout. "But what if I wanted to go to the dance with him?"

Emmett looked taken back. Clearly, he hadn't thought of that.

"Ah, well… I – ugh –"

"It's okay Emmett, I didn't want to go with him. Actually, I'm not sure I want to go at all at this rate." I grimaced while imagining all of the people pushing past one another in an attempt to ask me to dance. "Thank you for that by the way."

"It's no problem. I was under the impression the dance was girl's choice."

"Me too," I sighed.

The rest of the day was spent in an attempt to dodge other requests. I barely managed to find Bella after school and we both compared days. I guess Mike and Eric along with Tyler had been keeping the other kids away from her because her day was pretty bland other than the Mike-Jessica ordeal. Her face turned sympathetic as I told her about the five different boys that came up to me, not leaving out the rest that I could see watching me but not having the courage to ask.

When we finally started making our way back to the truck, I wasn't surprised to find Eric waiting around the corner.

"Hey, Eric," I called.

"Hi, Emma, Bella."

"What's up?" Bella said as she unlocked the door.

"Uh, I was just wondering, Bella... if you would go to the spring dance with me?" His voice broke on the last word. I turned away a bit to give them some privacy.

"I thought it was girls' choice," she said.

"Well, yeah," he admitted.

"Thank you for asking me, but I'm going to be in Seattle that day."

"Oh," he said. "Well, what about you Emma? Do you need someone to go with?"

I turned back towards Eric. Was he for real?

"Thanks, but no thanks, Eric," I said trying to be firm but calm. He was still sort of a friend, no need to be super mean. "I don't know if I'm going at all yet. If I do, I'm probably going by myself or with friends."

"Alright then, maybe next time."

"Sure," Bella agreed as I got into the car.

Bella yanked the door open and jumped inside, slamming it loudly behind her. Mad about Edward, I guessed, having heard his chuckle when I got in.

She revved the engine deafeningly and reversed out into the aisle. Edward was in his car already, sliding out smoothly in front and cutting us off. He stopped there – to wait for his family and annoy Bella more. Directly behind us, Tyler Crowley getting out of his car, ready to come over and ask my already pissed sister out.

I heard a knock on the passenger side window and rolled it down to show Tyler.

"I'm sorry, Tyler, I'm stuck behind Cullen." Bella bit out.

"Oh, I know – I just wanted to ask you something while we're trapped here." He grinned.

I forced myself not to laugh and attempted to keep a straight face as best as I could.

"Will you ask me to the spring dance?" he continued.

"I'm not going to be in town, Tyler." Bella snapped, her voice sharp.

"Yeah, Mike said that," he admitted.

"Then why –"

He shrugged. "I was hoping you were just letting him down easy."

"Sorry, Tyler," She said, not hiding her irritation. "I really am going out of town."

"That's cool. We still have prom."

His eyes darted over to me. I was going to throw a fit if he asked me out right here. I was _not_ going to be able to deal with paying second fiddle to my sister in less than ten minutes to a dance that_ I _was meant to ask a date to in the first place. Tyler seemed to understand that somewhat as he took one look at my face and bolted. Smart.

I looked forward to see Alice, Rosalie, Emmett, and Jasper all sliding into the Volvo. In his rearview mirror, Edward's eyes were on us. He was shaking with laughter and I might have to if I was feeling up to it. Right now, I was just done with dealing with people.

When we got home, Bella decided to make chicken enchiladas for dinner. I ignored the phone, happy to let Bella get it and play matchmaker with Jessica. I decided to play some Teen Titians. No romance, only some bad guys and butt kicking. Just what I needed.

It was during dinner that Bella decided to let Dad in on her weekend plans.

"Dad?"

"Yeah, Bella?"

"Um, I just wanted to let you know that I'm going to Seattle for the day a week from Saturday... if that's okay?"

"Why?" He sounded surprised, and I would be too if I didn't know the reason for the trip.

"Well, I wanted to get few books – the library here is pretty limited – and maybe look at some clothes."

"That truck probably doesn't get very good gas mileage," he said.

"I know, I'll stop in Montesano and Olympia – and Tacoma if I have to."

"Is Emma going with you?" he asked.

"No, just Bella," I said. I didn't really need or even want to go. I already know that the trip would be changed, so it would be better not to impose myself anyway.

"Seattle is a big city – you could get lost," he fretted.

"Dad, Phoenix is five times the size of Seattle – and I can read a map, don't worry about it."

"Do you want me to come with you?"

I could tell Bella was horrified, even as she hid it from Dad.

"That's all right, Dad, I'll probably just be in dressing rooms all day – very boring."

"Oh, okay." The thought of sitting in women's clothing stores for any period of time immediately put him off. I didn't blame him, I knew what shopping with Mom was like.

"Thanks." She smiled at him.

"Will you be back in time for the dance?"

"No – I don't dance, Dad."

"Oh, that's right," he realized. "Emma, are you going?"

I disguised my thinking by chewing a bit. "I don't know yet, I haven't decided." It was true enough. I had no clue if I wanted to or if I would have other plans yet.

_I might go if I can find a dress when we go out with the other girls_, I thought as I finished my food.


	7. Chapter 6: Falls and Feelings

Sunset Chapter 6: (Blood Type) Falls and Feelings

The next day seemed normal at first but once we got to school that all changed. I split off from Bella early in order to put my dance bag in my locker before heading to English. When I walked in, I was surprised to find an empty seat next to Alice. Looking up, Alice waved me over. I quietly sat down next to her, unsure of this new development.

"Um, hey," I said, nervous.

"Hey," she said softly.

We sat in silence for a few minutes. I went to say something, though I have no clue what, when Alice spoke up.

"I'm sorry that I was avoiding you. You didn't deserve that."

"It's okay." It wasn't but she was talking to me. I didn't want to start a fight. Alice shook her head.

"No, it's not. I shouldn't have acted like I did. My family – they were worried about some things during the, uh, incident a few weeks back. I can't really talk about it but me avoiding you had less to do with you and more to do with my family. I just didn't know what to do so I distanced myself. But everything seems to have worked out in the end and I want to try to mend our friendship if I can."

Translation: Edward and maybe Rosalie threw a fit because they thought Bella and I would sell them out and made everyone stop talking to me. Great.

"It's alright, really. I only blame you a little. I bet Edward was mad when Jasper and Emmett kept talking to me even before he approved it." I huffed out, amused.

"What makes you think it was Edward?" Her gaze cut into me. Shit.

"Well he was the one who was with you when you saved me. I bet he thought we were trouble – and trust me, Bella is a magnet for trouble – and wanted you all to stay away so you would be safe." I shrugged, hoping she would buy it. I was half right anyway.

Alice seemed like she wanted to call me out but refrained.

"More like the opposite," She whispered as she looked down.

I ignored her comment.

We both had secrets to keep and it that meant believing each other's bull then we would do it if it meant we could be friends now. We moved on to a less tense conversation and I resigned myself to similar apologies and half explanations for the rest of the day.

Bella came in late, surprisingly. Trying to match the date with the books, I supposed that it was the day that Edward asked her to Seattle. I tried to think through the day and realized that Edward had given up. That was why Alice was allowed to talk to me now. Then it was also blood typing today. Oh boy.

My suspicion was proven correct when I walked into Chemistry and Emmett was nowhere to be found. I was glad he got the heads up or I would have personally given him an excuse to leave. Thankfully, my typing went smoothly. I wasn't afraid of needles or blood like Bella so there was no chance of an episode.

I was worried about being in the same class as Jasper with an open wound and almost didn't go. I went anyway because I figured that if I decided to go and Alice saw something, she would tell Jasper not to go. I would rather leave it to Alice than try to make something better and it turn out bad.

Jasper seemed to do fine the entire time, though we were both awkward as heck trying to dance around the elephant that we both knew existed but didn't know the other did. He apologized to me like Alice and I gave my same excuse about who I thought was behind it all. He didn't even try to deny it. In fact, he almost threw Edward under the bus, which made me laugh. We had a normal conversation and I almost forgot about the danger. Almost. I made sure to keep my hand as far away as I could manage. It wouldn't help much but I tried.

Right before Lunch I got filled in by Mike about the trip to the beach this weekend. I had almost totally forgotten about that at this point but was pumped. I missed the beach and would love to go so soon after I came back.

"Edward Cullen is staring at you again," Jessica said to Bella as we sat down. "I wonder why he's sitting alone today."

Her head snapped up and I attempted to "stealthily" pointed in Edward's direction. I might not like the dude for taking my friends away but my sister liked him. I wasn't going to ruin this for her. Edward motioned for her to join her as Bella stared on in disbelief.

"Does he mean you?" Jessica asked, astonished.

"Maybe he needs help with his Biology homework," She muttered. "Um, I'd better go see what he wants."

Bella still didn't move. I gave her a shove to start walking and I got a confused and angry glance.

"_Go,_" I hissed, waving her on. If I was going to be her wingman, I was going to do it right. That meant that I was going to make sure she went to talk to him. There is no way I was going to let her complain to me for hours about this boy and then _not_ talk to him when he's asking for her.

I couldn't remember everything they talked about but I knew enough to not worry. Everyone at the table started whispering to each other. Mike and Eric looked like they were struggling to melt Edward with their eyes alone. Jessica stared at Bella for a bit. Then she whipped around and focused on me.

"Why does Edward Cullen want with Bella? Are they dating? Do you think that –"

I held up a hand. "I'm going to stop you there. I have no clue, but I assume it's like Bella said, Biology homework. I know for certain that they are not dating but nothing beyond that."

Jessica hummed but didn't press any further. She didn't seem happy that she couldn't get any answers out of me. I ignored her and the rest of the table in an attempt to finish my meal.

Looking over I could see Emmett at the Cullen's table. Looks like he had just skipped the class and not the rest of the day. I left lunch early, done with evading questions that I didn't or wasn't supposed to know the answers to.

Getting changed in to my dance uniform for the day, I made my way to the room. I decided on a light-blue tank top and loose fitting black and white shorts with my black jazz shoes. Two people were in there already and I ignored then in favor of doing some light stretching and a few beginner yoga poses. Yoga was a good way to destress myself when I needed a break without wearing myself out before practice started.

When practice began a few minutes later I could tell something was off. I didn't know what but the world felt Off, capital needed. It was like I could feel it the second before it happened.

I went to make a step and gravity just _changed_. The floor warped and the room seemed to alter slightly before fixing itself. It was only for a second this time, but a second was all it took.

When I hit the floor, the room stopped to watch. I sat up but could already feel the damage. I bit back a curse. Miss Dena rushed over to take a look.

"Swan, you have to be more careful. You just got your shoulder back. Katie, take Emma to the nurse. You better go home and rest your ankle. I'll tell the coach that you probably won't make it back."

"Thank you," I called out as Katie helped me to hobble out of the door, trying not to lean too heavily on her. I wanted to yell about how it wasn't my fault but it wouldn't matter.

Remember what I mentioned earlier about sometimes physics could change and go wonky? This was what I was talking about. Worse part? No one else could see it or know what I was talking about.

When we were only a little bit away from the main office, I moved Katie away.

"You can go back now, it's not that far. I can make it from here."

"Are you sure? That fall looked bad."

"Yeah, I'll feel better after a little rest. Go on, I know you hate missing."

After a few more minutes, I managed to convince Katie to go back without me. Waiting until she rounded the corner, I sighed and slid down on the concreate, letting myself lean back onto the brick wall. Looking over my foot, it seemed to be fine. Maybe I shouldn't bother with the nurse and just go home. Avoid the probability of meeting up with Bella and Edward all together.

"Are you okay?"

I startled, looking up to see Alice getting down to kneel by me. Jasper stood next to her.

"Yeah, just a small fall in class. It'll be fine with a bit of rest. I think I'm just going to go home."

Alice look up at me in surprise and I missed what she said. All I could think about was how close her face was to mine and how her boyfriend (husband – _vampire_ husband who could _feel my emotions_) would probably hate me if he knew how much I was affected by his girlfriend (wife).

In fact, I hated myself for it. I was attracted to both of them, even though they were together, and I was almost positive that they both knew it. They most likely thought it was cute and weren't worried about some upstart human making her way into their relationship. I know I wouldn't, especially because the human in question was _me_. I had nothing on either of them and we all knew it.

(In addition, I was in a full-blown internal denial about my feelings towards Alice – I just liked her because of her vampireyness, I was confusing attraction with jealousy because she was with Jasper, I only liked her because she saved my life, etc., etc. I had never really liked a girl before and had no clue how to handle it. Boys? Yes. Girls? has crashed.)

Add into the fact that I in no way wanted to get between them, they have nothing to worry about.

"Are you sure she didn't hit her head too?" Jasper fake whispered, the concern in his voice mixed with amusement when I was unresponsive.

I blushed, then hated myself for it. "Sorry, I spaced. What did you say?"

"I asked if you would let us help you to the nurse. I would feel better if you get checked before we let you go home." Alice repeated.

I thought it over and nodded. It wouldn't hurt to have someone with more experience have a look. Alice brightened but Jasper seemed to get a gleam in his eye. Before I could question anything, I was suddenly off of the ground and in a pair of strong arms. My hands instinctively rapped around Jasper's neck as we started moving. I flounder for a few seconds before I can finally make a sentence.

"Wha – Jasper! Put me down! Alice tell him to let me go."

Alice tapped on her chin for a bit like she was in thought before shaking her head. "Nope, no can do."

I sighed before resigning myself to my fate. "Welp, no way out then," I exaggerated, "Guess you'll just have to carry me forever."

"That's the plan darlin'," Jasper stated in a matter of fact way, making me blush some more.

It wasn't too much longer before we made our way into the main office, which was strangely empty. Turning into the nurse's station, I was sat in a chair off to the side while one kid I recognized as Lee was made to lay down on a cot.

"Another fainter?" The nurse asked me.

"No, just a fall and hurt ankle." With a hum, the nurse, whose name I never got, got down to look at my foot.

"You look fine, just try to keep off of it for the next day or so." Finishing up, she turned back towards Lee.

"Right, just what I was saying. Now can I go home?" I asked Alice and Jasper.

"Let us drive you," Jasper immediately said.

"Please, we hardly ever get to hang out," Alice begged even before I could protest. I wanted to say no, I really did. But those puppy-dog eyes. They were killer.

"Fine," I gave in, overstretching the word out to show how much I "despised" the idea. Alice jumped for joy before going out to convince Mrs. Cope (finally learned her name) to let Jasper and her miss class. I doubt she would have any trouble.

"There's no escaping the eyes, is there?"

"Nope."

"So, we're just her minions then? Forced to do her bidding for all eternity?"

"Yep."

"I don't know why I expected anything else."

We both deadpan looked at each other before bursting into laughter. Well, if Alice wanted to use me as a minion, I guess I had no choice. Not that I would argue against it much. I was already bewitched by her. I wondered if Jasper knew that he held the same power over me. He might. I found that I didn't mind that either.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**So this is the last part of the story I have pre-written right now so I will not be posting as often as I have been (sorry guys). A little short but it had some Alice, Jasper Emma, and bonding. And Emma being confused but not outright denying herself all together. Note: I want to make it clear that she has no problem with being attracted to girls (even if she is a bit thrown by it) but does not want to get in the way of the Alice/Jasper relationship. Emma does not like the fact that she is wanting to go after both halves of the couple (though she cant know yet that the couple doesn't mind at all).**


	8. Chapter 7: Beach Fun

Sunset Chapter 7: (Scary Stories) Beach Fun

"What kind of music do you like?" Alice asked me we slid into the backseat of Bella's truck. Jasper was going to drive the truck since Edward had taken Bella home.

"I like rock and pop mostly. Bella's more into classical but I know a few songs from her. What do you guys like?"

"I like pop too! Here," she pulled out her phone, "let me show you this new song I found. Tell me what you think."

We listened to a couple of songs on the drive back, mostly pop. Alice and I shared some of the same favorite songs and artists, like Usher and Kelly Clarkson. Jasper, cliché as it is, liked country music. We both seemed to like Keith Urban, among others, and ended up played a few of his songs. We soon got into talking a bit about some of the other things we liked, such as Alice's love of fashion.

"Wait, you play guitar? That's amazing," I said to Jasper after he let it slip that he played. "My mom had Bella and I take piano lessons when we were younger, but Bella hated it. I got really bored and could never remember what note was which. We eventually quit and moved on to other things."

"Like dance? I saw you the other day in class and you looked like you knew what you were doing," Alice complimented me.

I could feel my face getting hot the more Alice went on about me until Jasper cut her off.

"Ali, sweet, you're making her embarrassed. We're here anyway."

I looked out the window to see the front of my house. It felt like we were talking forever before, but now it felt like time had flown. Edward was in his car next to us, waiting on his siblings. We all got out of the car and I gave a wave to Edward, who hesitantly gave one back.

"Thanks so much, the both of you."

"It's not a problem, sugar," Jasper smirked when I started blushing again at the pet name, "and one day I'll have to play something special for you."

I beamed through my blush.

"I'd like that very much."

"Then it's a date!" Alice proclaimed. Before I could get confirmation on what kind of date she meant (friend meetup? A _real_ date?! We hadn't even _chosen_ a day!) the three of them were gone.

/-/

When Saturday finally came around, I was so excited for our trip to the beach. I was a little tired too because Bella had kept me up later than I would have liked. It had started at dinner last night.

"Dad, do you know a place called Goat Rocks or something like that? I think it's south of Mount Rainier," Bella asked fake-casually.

"Yeah – why?"

I slowed my movements, forgetting that Edward told Bella where they were going. He wasn't even trying to be subtle anymore, was he?

She shrugged. "Some kids were talking about camping there."

"It's not a very good place for camping." He warned. "Too many bears. Most people go there during the hunting season."

I wanted to face palm. Was he trying to get them all caught? It would make more sense than whatever other backwards logic would lead to this.

"Oh," She murmured, "Maybe I got the name wrong."

I then spent the next hour and a half letting her vent her frustrations about the "blood typing incident" and the weird camping spot. I eventually just told her I was going to bed and left mid-rant.

I was so glad that today was when she would finally get more clues to the puzzle. Maybe then she could leave me alone and be distracted by research.

I put on a black two-piece swimsuit with white polka dots. For a coverup, I threw on a pair of shorts and a t-shirt, nothing I would mind getting wet. I put a towel in a bag with my things and put my hair into a bun. A pair of flip-flops and I was ready to head out.

We had decided to meet the others at The Newtons' Olympic Outfitters store, just north of town. I'd been there once or twice with dad but didn't know much about the place other than Mike's parents own it.

As we pulled up next to the other vehicles, I could see the group standing around in front of the store. Eric was there, along with two other boys who might have been Ben and Conner. I didn't know which was which all too well. Jess was there by Angela and Lauren, who still hated Bella. She seemed to not like me just by proxy. That was fine, I wasn't her biggest fan either.

Three other girls stood with them, including one who gave Bella a dirty look as we got out of the truck, and whispered something to Lauren, who eyed us scornfully.

Note to self, don't sit near them.

At least Mike was happy to see us.

"You came!" he called, delighted. "And I said it would be sunny today, didn't I?"

"I told you I was coming," Bella reminded him.

"Of course, I _so_ pumped! Let's get going!" I yelled, pushing a fist into the air. Mike laughed but Bella seemed done with my energy.

"We're just waiting for Lee and Samantha... unless you invited someone," Mike added.

"Nope," Bella lied.

I shook my head. I didn't bother, knowing that the Cullens wouldn't be welcomed. Anyway, anyone else I would have invited would have already been there.

Mike looked satisfied.

"Will you ride in my car? It's that or Lee's mom's minivan."

"Sure."

"You can have shotgun," he promised.

Turning to me, Mike seemed to remember I existed.

"There's not enough room for two so, uh –"

"It's fine Mike, I'll ride in Lee's van."

The numbers worked out in Bella favor, not so much for me. Lee brought two extra people, and suddenly every seat was necessary. I managed to get between Angela and Samantha in the Van with the both of them squished between others. I had to end up half on Angela's lap by the time we took off but she didn't seem to mind too much, thankfully.

It was only fifteen miles to La Push from Forks, with gorgeous, dense green forests edging the road most of the way and the wide Quillayute River snaking beneath it twice. We rolled down the windows to get the sunlight and breeze going. It was getting hot with so many in the car and I was glad I had already changed. Connor decided the best way to make more room was to push himself out of the sunroof like we were in a limo. No one complained except Lee, who was worried that if anything happened to his mom's car, it would be on him.

I'd been to the beaches around La Push many times during my life with and without dad, so the sight of First Beach was familiar to me. It was still breathtaking, even now.

We picked our way down to the beach, Mike leading the way to a ring of driftwood logs that were used for parties. There was a fire circle already in place, filled with black ashes. Eric and Ben gathered broken branches of driftwood from the drier piles against the forest edge, and soon had a teepee-shaped construction built atop the old cinders.

"Have you ever seen a driftwood fire?" Mike asked us. We were sitting on one of the bone-colored benches; the other girls clustered, gossiping excitedly, on either side. Mike kneeled by the fire, lighting one of the smaller sticks with a cigarette lighter. I was waiting until we had settled in a bit to go swimming.

"No," Bella said as he placed the blazing twig carefully against the teepee.

"You'll like this then – watch the colors." He lit another small branch and laid it alongside the first. The flames started to lick quickly up the dry wood.

"It's blue," She said in surprise.

"The salt does it. Pretty, isn't it?" He lit one more piece, placed it where the fire hadn't yet caught, and then came to sit by Bella. Thankfully, Jess was on his other side or who knows what would have gone down. I watched the attractive blue and green flames crackle toward the sky, already having seen it dozens of times before but still loving the sight.

After a while I made my way with some of the girls out towards the sea. Some others had decided that they were going to the tidal pools. I ignored most of the other girls, including Lauren and her friends, and just floated around.

Near the camp I started hearing chatter and moved myself closer only to see some of my friends from the tribe.

"Hey strangers. How's it hanging?" I yelled out as I ran out of the ocean.

A chorus of "Emma!" sounded out as I reached the group.

"Yo, sis! How's it been!" Jacob said as he pulled me into a headlock and messed up my hair. "I heard you and Bella had moved here but didn't know I'd be seeing you this soon."

"Don't noogie the child!" I shrieked as I attempted to wiggle out of his arms. As much as he was younger and smaller than me now, he was still strong. Jared laughed and pulled Jacob from me before I could go limp.

"Yep! I'm back and ready to party with my boiz!" I laughed, making sure to vocalize the 'z' as much as I could, like the disgrace I was. I got a lot of groans as a result.

"Yeah, yeah, mushy we-missed-you aside, are we swimming or what?" Paul impatiently started to drag Embry towards the ocean. Embry couldn't fight as his arms were full of water guns. "Last one in has to be on Brady's team!" Said kid shouted out at that.

"I call Seth!" I yelled, snagging the arm of the younger boy as he tried to race past me towards his sister.

"Ugh, no! Emma, you can't aim, and I refuse to be used as a shield the entire time again."

"Seth…" I groaned even as I let go of him so he could run away.

"Still missed you! Just not enough to be on your team!" he yelled back at me. I laughed as I moved to follow the others.

"Hey."

I jumped a little as Sam appeared besides me. We started walking together towards the water.

"Hey. How's everything going? Not having too much fun without me, I hope."

Sam gave a chuckle. "Everyone's doing good. Better than good even. Mostly thanks to your help." His grin fell. "You haven't said anything, right?"

My smile fell as well.

"Of course not. You know me Sam. I wouldn't betray you like that."

He grimaced. "I know, I know. But this is bigger than just me and you."

"I get that. I don't take it personally. I want them to stay kids as much as they can. Just you still? Or…" I looked out to where the others were messing around with the water guns.

"Jared and Paul." A beat of silence. "Thank you. Without you my relationship with Leah, even with the other boys, would have been a lot worse."

"It was nothing, really. You guys are my friends and it would have killed me if I knew I could help and did nothing. How are Emily and Leah, by the way?"

"Good, really good. It was hard at first, trying to work out two relationships at once, but we got there."

"That's good. If you need anything, just let me know, okay?"

"Same to you. Stay safe. Danger can be hidden in plain sight."

The smile was back as he ran out to the others. Considering the odd warning, he must have smelled the Cullen's scent on me.

My relationship with the Quileutes and Sam was interesting. They all knew that I knew about the shifters, but there was nothing they could do about it. I had promised that I wouldn't tell anyone unless it was life or death, mostly because it wasn't my secret to tell. Billy had vouched for me and Sam was my friend even before, but the elders were still hesitant about letting an outsider know.

I guess that it was my knowledge of the future that allowed me to make the connection between the stories of the tribe about the wolves and Sam's odd behavior after his shifting because I learned about the wolves _before_ I remembered the books. I had made the connection myself, which I guess was a good thing since it gave me realistic reaction to finding out. Honestly, if I was to find out now, my reaction would have been lackluster and suspicious.

I was also able to help Sam, Emily, and Leah's relationship problem before it had ever really started getting bad, though that was more of a fluke than anything since I had no clue about it. I have to give my subconscious credit for that one. I had been staying with Seth and Leah for a bit when Emily had come to visit and had seen the entire thing go down with Sam. With my prodding, I had managed to get Sam to confess to Leah about the wolf imprinting in the hopes that it would do something to help her pain. I ended up holding some half-strung together couples' therapy with the three of them after Emily was informed about everything.

In the end, Leah liked Sam, Sam liked Leah and Emily, and Emily was tentatively liking Sam. They ended up trying a relationship with the three of them and, so far, it seemed to be working. It was a far better alternative than Leah stewing in rage, Sam in guilt, and Emily getting scarred (amazingly, since they didn't get into a big fight, Emily didn't get hurt).

Recently, I had hinted at Sam that he needed to include Seth, Brady, and Collin into the group. While I never said why, I think Sam had gotten my hint since they were all here today. Sam never asked, and I never said, but I think he suspected that I had something special going on with me.

I grinned as I ran into the water, glad that I could do something to help make that mess better. We played around for a long time until everyone got hungry. Making our way over to the bonfire, I made sure to grab some food before joining the others around the circle. Around this time, Bella and the others who went on the hike came back.

After lunch, I decided to go with some of the kids on a second hike to the tide pools. I had been there a few times with others, but it was still a fun time. When we got back it looked like it was going to rain, and everyone was starting to pack up. I saw Jacob and Bella make their way back with Mike, who looked grumpy.

I wondered how Bella's bad flirting went. While Bella and Jacob would one day have a weird romance-thing, Jacob and I had always seen each other as siblings. I was quite thankful, since I had no want to get into that love-triangle.

Making out way back home, I stared at the rain, wondering how much longer this piece would last.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Originally, I had planned to skip the car ride home but someone had commented that they wanted to see what happened. That made me think about it more and I decided to give it a go. So shout out to BeforexImxDead for the idea!**** It was a bit tough to write but I think it turned out fine. Also, more bonding, yay! And a maybe date ;)**

**I hated the way that Leah got the short end of the stick originally, but I liked Emily and Sam's relationship so I thought "If I already have three-person relationship, what's one more? I do what I want!" Here comes Emma Swan, matchmaker-extraordinaire who can't even deal with her own maybe-relationship to save the day! ****I also originally had Emma know about the wolfs beforehand but then realized halfway through that she _couldn't_ have know from the books because of the timeline I had created so... she used her smarts to make connections, I guess(?). I knew I always wanted her to be a more stable bridge between the pack and the Cullens so she needed to be in the loop early but they would have never told her on her own. A little hand-wavy, but whatever.**

**Petra0suomesta also asked "****You said that Edward can't read Emma's mind when she is thinking about future. But what about when she is thinking about her past life. I know she doesn't remember much, but for the sake of the argument let say she remembers her "first" mother talking to her about something. Can Edward see this? Or does he see it as "normal" memory? ****You also said that Edward can see the thoughs of future when they have happened. Now that the car incident is in the past, Edward can see it in Emma's thoughts. But how does he see it? Does he see the new version with Emma in it? Can he see the canon version where it was just him and Bella?"**

**Answers - Great questions! Most of my ideas just come and go randomly and I don't think through everything, so I don't have a extremely clear thought on the first part. I would say that any past memory would still seem like a "normal" memory since Emma lived through it. The second part definitely depends on Emma and what she's thinking at the time. If she is thinking about the incident as she lived through it, that's what he sees. If she is thinking about what "should" have gone down, Edward would see that.**

**Long authors note is long and you all have a good night/day! Thanks for reading!**


	9. Chapter 8: A Reveal, I Guess

Sunset Chapter 8: (Nightmare) A Reveal, I Guess

Sunday morning, I was startled awake by a heavy weight falling on top of me. I quickly sat up, pushing the object away from me. Bella leaned back towards the other half of the bed.

"Whatzit?" I muttered, looking at the clock.

"You're not going to believe –" I threw a pillow at my sister.

"No. To early. Sleep." I laid back down and pulled the cover over my head in defiance. It's not like I couldn't get up early, but it was, like, six. And on a Sunday.

It was oddly silent for a minute before my covers were rudely ripped off my bed.

"Bella!" I yelled, scrambling for the sheets. "Give it back!"

"Not until you listen to me. It's important, I swear."

"What if I was naked?" I pout, crossing my arms.

She rolled her eyes and pulled the sheets further away.

"Well you aren't so just let me speak. Ten minutes."

"You got five."

"Okay, uh…"

Bella pushed her weight from foot to foot, unsure where to start. She opened and closed her mouth multiple times.

"Three minutes."

"It's barely been a minute!" She protested.

I sighed and patted the bed. Bella hopped up next to me, both of us in crisscross across from each other.

"Okay," she finally started, "you remember how the Cullens are hiding a secret right? Well Jacob told me some ghost stories yesterday from the tribe and… I think I know what the Cullens are."

Oh, wow, we were already this far? Okay, okay, Emma, don't panic, just act normal. But how to respond? Oh God, its been too long hasn't it? Think, morning brain, Think! Interested but conserved. Don't deny, it'll make it easier but not too interested.

"Um, Emma? Look you don't have to know if you don't want to, but I thought with how much time you spend with Jasper you might –"

"What? I don't like him. We're just friends."

Bella raised an eyebrow and her grin became predatory.

"Sure, right. You realize I never said anything about _liking_ anyone?"

I felt like I just got sucker punched in the gut. _Oh no, what have I done?_

"Bella – Bells, please, _please_, don't say anything. I know that Alice and Jasper are together, and I won't get between them and he wouldn't like me anyway and –"

"Hey, calm down" Bella soothed me, her hand rubbing up and down at my shoulders. "Emma, _breath._ I know you, I know you would never. Remember Mark? You liked him and you didn't ask him to freshman homecoming because you knew he liked, what was her name? The blonde one?"

"Jasmine Helmly," I supplied, feeling a bit better. I always did after talking with Bella. Being able to talk to someone about your problems was nice, I forgot the sensation of sharing stress. A nice reminder about why Bella shared with me so much.

"Yeah, her. I can say for utter certainty that you are not the only person to have a crush on Jasper. I know most of the school have liked, at the very least, one Cullen at some time or another."

"I know, sorry for the freak out. You know I'm just … not good with accepting my crushes."

"That's putting it lightly." Bella laughed. "Remember the only time you tried to ask out a guy, uh, Reid? I think? You almost broke your nose running into that locker."

"It was _so embarrassing_," I groaned, "Just thinking about it – Ugh it's too early for all of this. Can we go back to whatever was so important that you had to wake me up?"

"Yes, please! But just remember your sister is here if you ever want to talk about Jasper."

For half of a second, I thought about bringing up my Alice dilemma, but it was way too early to deal with any more freak-outs. Also, I had no clue how I was even dealing with the situation myself. I had pretty much accepted that I liked Alice at this point, but I think it was more of a her-thing than a girl-thing. I knew Mom, Dad, and Bella well enough to know they would be fine with it, I just didn't want to deal with it at this very moment. I had vampires to deal with.

"So," Bella started with a totally unnecessary clap that I appreciated, "get this. _Vampires_."

"Okay… so how exactly did you get from superhero to vampires of all things? I'm not totally throwing the idea out, but give me some proof? I've not really seen anything that screams 'I want to suck your blood,'" I asked, making sure to do my best Dracula impression.

"I know, but I don't think they're _that_ type of vampires." Bella grabbed my arm and tugged me towards her room. "Look, I've been doing research, just come see."

With a sigh, I pulled a blanket around me and let her drag me towards her room. There I sat on her bed as she read aloud to me articles from some vampire site and compared the entries to what she had noticed from the Cullens. Then she added in the story Jacob told her, one I had known for years but let her retell anyways because I had no energy to fight her.

"So, good vampires that most likely won't hurt us," I summarized, "If that's the case, we have nothing to worry about."

"You're not scared? They could kill us." Bella looked on at me, disbelieving that I could be so chill. Says the girl who will not care about any of this in a few weeks or less.

"If they wanted to kill us, they would have done it already," I shrugged, "Besides, weak baby human versus super strong old vamps. If we die, then there's not much we can do about it."

With that, I left Bella's room and spent the rest of my weekend relaxing.

On Monday, after Mike and Jessica got together for the dance, Jessica invited us out to Port Angeles for dress shopping. I was hesitant to allow Bella or myself to go at all. While I knew that everything would be alright in the end and it was important for Bella and Edward's relationship, I was honestly scared. I didn't think that I could ever willingly let Bella put herself into a situation like the one she originally went through. I could only hope that I could keep Bella from getting herself lost this go around. Maybe Edward would show up if I gave him an opening instead of just stalking her all night.

That night prayed that I wasn't making a huge mistake as we drove out of town.

* * *

School got me dead, sorry I'mma be late.

Not really much for this chapter, Emma is already over the 'shock reveal' so... Also, I don't care to restate the Mike-Jessica drama. I imagine that Emma lets Bella handle all that anyway. I've been wanting to get to the next chapter, like, forever ago but now I'm just dead from school so who knows when I'll get to it. Enjoy, sorry its so short.


	10. Chapter 9: Shopping Finds and Fails

Sunset Chapter 9: (Port Angeles) Shopping Finds and Fails

"So, what does 'Semiformal' even mean?" I asked as I moved towards another row of dresses. Jessica and Angela had taken Bella and me to the main department store in Port Angeles in order to look for dresses. Bella seemed happy to let the other girls do our own thing, but I still wasn't sure if I wanted to go to the dance. My plan was to look through the dresses and see if there was anything I liked. If I decide not to go, I still might use the dress somewhere else.

"No clue," Angela replied, "but I think as long as we don't show too much skin, we should be fine."

Jessica hummed in agreement before pulling out a long yellow dress. The sleeves were sheered and poofed out like some sort of cotton ball. We looked at each other, both making 'ew' faces as she put it back.

I pulled out a soft pink dress, examining it before adding it to the few others I had picked up. There wasn't as much here as there might have been in Phoenix, but there were a few good gems if you looked hard enough.

Jessica started talking about the past dances at Forks and was asking about the dances we had been to. I told them I had only gone to a few but missed a good bit of them. Both Jessica and Angela were surprised when Bella told them she had never been to a dance.

"Didn't you ever go with a boyfriend or something?" Jess asked dubiously as we walked through the front doors of the store.

"Really," She tried to convince us, "I've never had a boyfriend or anything close. I didn't go out much."

"Why not?" Jessica demanded.

"No one asked me," Bella shrugged.

She looked skeptical. "People ask you out here," she reminded her, "and you tell them no."

"Well, except for Tyler," Angela amended quietly.

"Excuse me?" Bella gasped. "What did you say?"

I let out a huff, mad at myself for having forgotten about him. Well, this wasn't anything big and, thankfully, not really my problem. Good luck, Bells.

"Tyler told everyone he's taking you to prom," Jessica informed me us.

"He said what?" She repeated in horror.

"I told you it wasn't true," Angela murmured to Jessica.

"That's why Lauren doesn't like you," Jessica giggled while we pawed through the clothes.

I could hear Bella's teeth grind together.

"Do you think that if I ran him over with my truck, he would stop feeling guilty about the accident? That he might give up on making amends and call it even?"

"Maybe," Jess snickered. '"If that's why he's doing this."

We finally made our way towards the dressing room, Bella choosing to sit and wait on us rather than try anything on herself.

Angela easily decided on a pale pink dress, but Jess was having a harder time.

"Black or blue?" She held up a long, strapless, basic black number and a knee-length electric blue with spaghetti straps. Bella told her to go with the blue and I agreed, honestly unsure. They both looked good to me.

I managed to find dress that I really liked. It was half sleeve knee-length black dress with a floral lace pattern on the top half. I really didn't need it, but it was super cute, and it was useful for more than just the dance.

Moving on to shoes and accessories, I decided to go all out and get a whole outfit. It wasn't often I splurged but I was feeling the girls'-night high. Distantly hearing Bella's attempts to ask Angela about the Cullens, I moved further away towards the bracelets. Not finding anything I didn't already have, I moved on to earrings where I found some nice fake pearls.

Back at the shoes, I managed to get a pair of black ankle strap heels that fit. After paying, we made our way outside.

When Bella tried to go off on her own, I panicked and told her that I wanted to go with her.

"Really, Emma, I would have been fine on my own," Bella said as we walked down the street towards the bookstore.

"I wanted to come, I need a new book," I dismissed her, trying not to look like I was struggling with my bags. They weren't heavy but I had to hold the dress at an awkward angle because of the way I held the bag with my shoes and earrings.

Finding the bookstore, I could tell immediately that it was not what Bella wanted. The windows were full of crystals, dream-catchers, and books about spiritual healing. Through the glass we could see a fifty-year-old woman with long, gray hair worn straight down her back, clad in a dress right out of the sixties, smiling welcomingly from behind the counter.

Before Bella could walk away, I grabbed her arm and pulled her inside.

"There might be something good, who knows what gets overlooked here," I muttered, pulling her into a row of books with a wave towards the woman up front.

Bella frowned, pulling out some of the books. "'_Understanding The Dreams You Dream,' 'Beginner's Guide To Dream Interpretation,' 'Understanding Spiritual Gifts'_ – Emma, this is just a bunch of magical spirit mumbo-jumbo." She pushed the books back into the shelf with a sigh.

"Maybe we're just on the wrong aisle," I said lightly as I pushed her towards the next row.

"Emma there's nothing here I'm going to want, what are we doing here?"

"Come on Bella, I thought you were more adventurous than this. What happened to the girl who wanted to know all about the supernatural a few days ago?"

Bella crossed her arms, obviously unimpressed.

_Great, I'm losing her._

"This has nothing to do with that. Come on, lets just find another store."

Bella started to turn away.

_Red alert, red alert! Do something…_

"Wait!" I grabbed her arms so that she faced the books. "I just thought that you, uh," I quickly scanned the shelf. "You might be interested… in… something like…"

_Bingo!_

"Something like this!" I reached out towards the shelf and presented her with the book. Bella, thank the stars, looked more interested than mad.

"'_How To Read People's Minds _-_ The Mystery Of Mind Reading Revealed,'"_ Bella hummed, flipping through the book. "Well, there might be something here that connects to…" Looking up, she shut the book.

"Can we stay for a while? Please, I really want to look around."

"Fine, I think I saw some desks in the back. I'll be reading this if you need me."

Waiting until she rounded the corner, I fist pumped the air.

_Plan 'Protect Bella' is a success. Just have to hope that Edward doesn't get too mad that I did that._

Now that I could relax some, I made my way up and down the aisles, looking for something to read. Eventually, I came across a few books about Chakras and meditation. Then I moved back towards the books on dreams and grabbed one or two. While I wasn't super into any of this, it would be interesting to learn more to kill time.

I made my way towards the back of the store where there were a few tables and couches. Taking a spot on a couch where I could clearly see Bella reading her book, I placed my bags next to me and opened a book on meditation.

/-/

A shaking motion startled Emma awake, her eyes flying open as the book on her lap fell on the couch.

"Come on, sweetpea, this isn't the place for a nap," Alice giggled, helping me to sit up.

"Alice? What are you doing here?" I looked over her shoulder as I got up and Jasper was behind her holding a few bags. "Jasper? Oh, shoot, did I fall asleep?" I asked, alarmed.

Alice laughed, and God, I forgot how nice her laugh was.

"Well thank you, I hope to hear you laugh more too." Alice said. "We were out shopping, and I thought that this would be a cool place to look at. We just so happened to see you sleeping and decided to wake you up."

"_Oh no, sleepy brain, stop, please,"_ I begged, blushing in mortification.

"Well, thank you for waking me, what time is it? Bella and I were supposed to meet back up with Angela and Jessica at the restaurant after we left the bookstore." I reached for my phone and sighed in relief. We would only be a little late, looks like I didn't sleep for too long. Texting Jessica, I let her know where I was and that I would be coming soon.

"Do you want us to drive you?" Jasper offered, "It would be no problem and it's already fairly dark out."

As I went to decline his offer, felt my heart skip a beat. Quickly swiping up one of the books next to me, I saw it was the one Bella had been reading earlier. On it was a sticky note saying that Bella was done reading and was going to try to find the other bookstore.

"Emma?" Jasper questioned, "are you okay?"

"Did you guys see Bella leave?" I swear, I wasn't asleep for that long. Maybe she had just left. I could go catch her if I was fast enough.

Jasper and Alice shake their heads. "She was gone before we got here. Why, what's the matter? Emma – Emma, you need to breath," Alice said as she guided me back on the couch.

My breathing was picking up as I spiraled, my thoughts escalating. "_I kept her here, would that change anything? She could miss them all together, she could be fine."_

"_But what if I made it worse," _a darker part of me thought. "_what if Edward can't find her now or if it's too late when he does. She could be dead or as good as and it would be your fault for messing with everything. She could be taken away and you will never see her again. Edward could lose it and kill them and maybe kill Bella and it would be __**all your fault, you're a horrible sister you got her killed its all your fault its –"**_

"Emma! Deep, slow breaths. Come on, with me." Jasper was kneeling in front of me, my hands in his. Alice was off to the side on her phone, speaking much faster than a human would be. I followed his breathing as much as I could. My panic was still here but there seemed to be a wall of calmness and something else between me and it. Gradually, Jasper succeeded in calming me down from my panic attack.

"I'm sorry," I muttered, the false-calm wall leaving me as the last of my terror was replaced with exhaustion.

"Don't be sorry, doll," Jasper sat next to me and slowly pulled me in for a side hug. "Is this okay? Or would you rather I not touch you?

"This is fine, thank you for helping me." I said, resting my head on his shoulder. "Just let me know if you need me to move."

Jasper hummed but didn't comment as Alice finished her call. Making her way back over, she sat on my other side but made no move to touch me.

"Are you feeling a little better?"

I nodded.

"Bella is with Edward at the restaurant. They are both fine. Edward told Jessica and Angela that we met up with you and are going to take you home, if that's okay?"

The last of the tension in me left after I knew Bella was safe with Edward. I trusted him not to let her get hurt.

"Yeah, that's fine, thank you."

Jasper gave Alice a quick look I almost missed. He must have gotten approval because he asked me if I could say what caused my panic attack. "If it's too soon or you would rather not talk about it, just say so." He assured me.

"I was just scared about Bella being lost, alone in the city. I was worried something bad would happen to her… I'm glad Edward found her before something could happen."

There was a beat of silence.

"Well, nothing happened, and everyone is alright," Alice leaned over and pat my leg. Then she helped to lead me to their car, refusing to let me carry my packages. Jasper stayed back, saying he had something to buy before we left. Alice took his bags too.

"I got it, don't worry. Also, I love the dress you chose, it looks great on you."

I somehow find the energy to blush. I also ignore her mess up, deciding to focus on the fact that she liked my dress.

We both get into the back of the car, a black thing that I couldn't name but I was sure it was expensive.

"Whose car is this? Jasper's?"

"It's Carlisle's car, he let us borrow it for shopping. I haven't found anything I really want yet, and Jasper only has a motorcycle right now. He's working on getting a new one soon though," She added as she leaned over the back seats to start the car. The cool air from the vents was nice, I didn't realize that I was so hot.

Jasper came out shortly after, carrying a bag of books. Getting into the car he handed it to me. Inside were all of the books that I had fallen asleep with.

"Jasper, you really didn't have to buy these! I was just browsing, I honestly don't know much about any of this stuff."

"Well, now you can. And honestly, we have the money. Just consider it a present for interrupting you evening."

"Now, Emma," Alice started as we pulled out of the parking lot, "What do you want for dinner?"

* * *

Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays and Happy New Year everyone! I finally got the urge to work on this so I wrote the whole chapter in one go. I know you guys want another chapter and I am excited to post so this is going up as soon as I finish (mistakes might be abundant).

Poor Emma, she tries so hard (and got less than far)(and in the end, it really didn't matter). Not entirely my original idea for this chapter, but pretty much on point with where I wanted it to be.

Also, all of these books are real, but I have no clue how good/bad any of them are. I just google searched by keywords and used the ones with interesting looking names.


	11. Chapter 10: Chinese Food

Sunset Chapter 10: (Theory) I don't have a restaurant named after me, so I get Chinese takeout instead

"So," I ask with a mouthful of chicken lo mein, "what was it you guys wanted to tell me?"

I was sitting in the back of Jasper's – well Carlisle's – car, a bag of Chinese takeout on the floor near my feet. Both vampires had lied, saying they had eaten already, but still bought way more food than I knew what to do with. Dad, Bella, and I would be eating leftovers for the rest of the week at this rate.

While Alice ran in to get our order, Jasper had told me that there was something important they wanted to share with me. I really wasn't looking forwards to the upcoming talk about vampires and all that jazz, but it was high time that we got this all out into the air.

Alice was watching me from the other side of the backseat, both of us facing each other. I was leaning against the door, making sure I had a good angle to see the both of them. Jasper had twisted himself around to be able to look at the both of us. His position honestly looked uncomfortable and I felt better knowing that it wouldn't leave any lasting effects to his back or neck.

Alice looked like she was trying to stare into my soul the way her golden eyes focused on me. Jasper was looking back and forth between the two of us, waiting for Alice to make the first move. I ate more noodles, my slurping breaking the silence.

"I'm trying to figure out what your response will be first," Alice admitted after a moment, "Your reactions are sometimes not what I expect."

I nodded. "Yeah I get that. I can be a bit wild in my choices. But I think I already know what this is about."

Alice and Jasper seemed to tense but relaxed as I continued.

"Yep, and really I don't mind. I know it's different, but I understand the chance you guys are taking, trusting me like this. I know not to tell anyone and technically, you guys didn't tell me, I found out from someone else, so you can't be punished right? Though they would try, I bet. And I understand Bella, but I still don't understand why you guys would include me in this – what's with those looks?"

As I was talking Alice seemed to go from understanding to confused. Jasper looked like he wanted to laugh, a small smirk appearing.

"No, please, go on," Jasper laughed, "Keep telling us about the thing that is completely not what we were going to tell you."

"Wait, you – we weren't talking about the same thing then?" My face reddened in embarrassment and I fought to keep it down. Alice shook her head while Jasper attempted to hold back his laughter.

"No, honey, we wanted to tell you that we liked you."

"What?" I asked, dropping my chopsticks into the takeout box, barely able to catch the carton in time.

Alice nodded, grabbing my now empty hand with her cold one.

"We were hoping to do this at another time, but with what happened tonight, we thought now might be best. We really like you Emma."

"What?" I repeated mindlessly, too busy mentally reevaluating everything I've ever done. "But you two are dating – I mean, I like you both – I mean, what? _What?_"

"Emma, we've talked it out and we both want to be with you, together, while also being with each other." Alice went on to explain how she and Jasper had talked about dating me before they approached me, both in agreement. I think Jasper was tempering my reaction because there was no way I should have been as calm as I was.

"This was in _no way_ what I thought we were going to talk about tonight."

"And what did you think we were going to say?" Alice asks gently.

"Well," I said, the words out of my mouth before I even made the decision to say them, "I thought you were going to tell me that your family was a coven of vegetarian vampires. Not your undying – ha – love for me."

If I wasn't so shocked at myself and the bombshell I had gotten and just given, I would have laughed at their expressions. As it was, I don't think I will ever see a vampire as shocked and panicked as Alice and Jasper do right now.

Alice let out a fake laugh, too obvious even to me. She seemed to be blown away about how I knew without letting her know I knew, muttering to herself about what she missed. Jasper looked worried and intrigued.

"I don't know if I should be impressed or not. How long have you known? What gave it away?" He asked.

I was glad they both decided to go ahead and accept I was in the know. I didn't want us to do the stupid game where I force them to acknowledge that I knew their secret.

"It's not your fault, Alice, there was no way you guys could have done anything different. I've had an idea since I first saw you guys, my first day at school. My dad and I have been going to First Beach since I was young, and I know almost all their stories. I was willing to leave well enough alone since I knew you guys weren't likely to do anything, being in school and all. Bella was the reason I was sure of it, she couldn't let it go. She came into my room one morning, sure that you guys were vampires and while I didn't agree, I didn't say anything against it."

"Wait, since the beginning?" Alice questioned, "And you still like us?"

I was hopeful they had missed that.

"Well, yeah, I mean you guys were nice to me even when you didn't have to be and your both, as I'm sure you know, very hot."

"So," Jasper continued, bringing us back to the original confession, "even though we are vampires, would you be willing to date us? We can't promise that everything will go perfect, of course, but we would love to try."

"Yeah, I would love to give us a chance," I finally agreed, attempting not to blush, "I never thought this would be an option, since I didn't want to break your relationship up. I am surprised that you guys just decided to go for it though. I know Edward is doing his 'I don't deserve you, I'm a monster" thing." I made sure to make my Edward voice as depressing as possible, throwing my arm over my heart in anguish.

"God, that's him alright," Alice laughed. "He wouldn't be able to accept wanting to be with Bella that easily without giving them both a hard time. Jasper and I get where he's coming from, but we really don't see a reason to stop ourselves from being happy with you." Alice shrugged in a 'what are you going to do' fashion.

"As long as you wanted this too, of course." Jasper added. "I mean, there is another reason we decided to go for it, but we might want to wait to tell you. We don't want to overload you with information too soon and this is something we can wait on."

"Alright, that's fine, there has been a good bit of revelations today on both sides," I decided. "Is there anything else that you guys think I should know immediately?"

"Well…" Alice started, "did Bella ever say anything about super powers when she was guessing what we were?"

Alice and Jasper continued to fill me in on all of the powers that vampires gained as they drove me home, making sure to cover their specialized powers and Edward's mind reading power. They described how Bella could keep Edward out of her mind, something I already knew. Turns out he could read my mind, but it was like static at times, just like my dad. Jasper's powers affected me normally and so did Alice's for the most part. I had nothing that stopped Alice from predicting my future, but I was pretty good at making choices that she wouldn't expect, throwing her off paths she thought I would take.

Alice informed me about their diet of animals, with Jasper being oddly quiet. I chose to ignore his silence, it was too soon to pry into his past and current struggle with blood.

This led to a talk about my scent and how it was different from a normal human's scent.

"So, I smell nice to you guys, but not in a 'I want to eat you' way? How does that work?" I asked, totally surprised. This was new for me.

"No clue, but we had assumed it had to do with the thing we are putting off talking about." Jasper said, bringing himself back into the conversation. "Then the others said that you smelt nice to them as well, so we took that off the table. It's almost like you are the opposite of your sister, with her having an extremely powerful scent to vampires. While we struggle to be around her, you are easy to be around even when compared to any other human."

"Interesting." I muttered as I opened my fortune cookie. I half expected some great bit of wisdom that would somehow fit in perfectly to my current situation.

'_He who throws dirt is losing ground.'_

I laughed, pleasantly surprised. This one was going on the fridge.

* * *

Me: I want to start an Undertale story!

Also Me: Please finish this chapter, people want more, why aren't you writing!?

Now the trio is officially together and Emma is "properly" informed of things. My brain was like, "Have a confession of things the others don't expect. All three have shocked Pikachu faces" and I love the idea so much I tried it.

Was looking for a random fortune and struck gold. I loved this fortune so much I had to add it here.


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